Stardust Fieldskaisap112: Kitty nods at you, running around the room as quickly as she can, creating two copies of herself in the process with Double Team. “Alright, Rapidash, Stomp that pink furball until you find the real one, then continue Stomping her!” The Rapidash neighs angrily, rushing towards the closest Skitty copy, Stomping through the Kitty mirage. The Rapidash quickly sets in to another Kitty and Stomps on it, and you sigh in relief as the hooves of the Rapidash pass through Kitty and into the ground. Kitty quickly takes this opportunity to ram head first into the Rapidash, covered herself in a layer of psychic energy as she uses Zen Headbutt on the Rapidash. The Rapidash takes a step back, huffing, as the attacks finally seem to be wearing it down resonably, but taking a look at Kitty, she doesn’t seem to be doing much better. The Rapidash makes its way to Kitty once again, trying to Stomp her, and just before she gets smashed by the attack, a Water Pulse hits the Rapidash in the face, and you see that Minori is wide awake, ready to help his teammate once again. The Rapidash shakes its wet head, panting in both anger and from the damage it has taken, Kitty as well, though Minori seems to be doing much better than both after his almost uninterrupted nap. The man chuckles as he sees the tides turning towards you, “No, no, we won’t let this happen! Rapidash, use Megahorn to take down the Skitty, then Poison Jab the Seel. If the cat is still standing, use a Take Down on it to finish the job, otherwise focus on taking down the Seel!”

What will you do now?

Kitty wasted no time creating two copies of herself with Double Team, the copies exact and identical to the real thing. The kidnapper wasn't happy though. “Alright, Rapidash, Stomp that pink furball until you find the real one, then continue Stomping her!” Noriko crossed her fingers for her feline friend when hearing those words. The Rapidash started Stomping away - but luckily hitting only one of Kitty's copies. The remaining two felines were running around, Rapidash closing in on one of them. Noriko forgot to breathe as Rapidash's Stomp hit the cat - and went right through it! The Pokémon was clearly getting frustrated. With Noriko sighing with relief, Kitty turned toward Rapidash and ran at it, covered in purple Psychic energy: Zen Headbutt! Kitty rammed head-first into Rapidash, causing the larger Pokémon to take a step back. It seemed to be losing its energy...but so was Kitty, much to Noriko's concern.

Rapidash wasn't done yet: it directed a Stomp right on Kitty. Right before Noriko got a scream out, a Water Pulse splashed hard in Rapidash's face! Minori was awake and back in the game. The stomping had missed Kitty, but the feline was almost as tired as Rapidash, the latter shaking the water off itself with great anger and frustration. It might have been just as great as the Rapidash's trainer's when he realized the tables had turned. “No, no, we won’t let this happen! Rapidash, use Megahorn to take down the Skitty, then Poison Jab the Seel. If the cat is still standing, use a Take Down on it to finish the job, otherwise focus on taking down the Seel!”

Noriko gritted her teeth, trying to figure out what to do. This battle had to end, fast. "Kitty! Avoid Rapidash with Double Team and follow up with Faint Attack! Minori, let's end this with two Water Pulses!"

Cloud ForestMarbleZone: The man opens the door completely, and you can finally see the tall looking man with pepper colored hair, red colored plaid shirt with rolled up sleeves and slightly dirty jeans looking at you with doubt in his grayish eyes. “Like my friend said, we are in need of any help you can give us.” You can sense the light and friendly tone Christian is trying to project, even under his condition, trembling slightly as the pain seems to be coming back. The man only stares at you and Christian before blinking and answering, “Bandits…? I’m sorry boys; there is nothing I can do…” It seems like your chance to try and get the man’s attention and help is over as he takes a step back and begins to close the door, “Wait! Please!” Christian cries, trying to engage the man once more.

The door stops halfway through before you hear a voice, “Stanley, who is at the door?” The voice of an old woman seems to be coming from a room nearby, inside the house. “Nobody, sweetheart, it’s just some trainers that are leaving!” You can hear steps coming closer before you hear the man again, “It’s alright. I’m handling it!” But it seems like whoever was coming closer to the door wants to take a look themselves as the halfway opened door opens again, “Oh my!” she yelps as she sees you and Christian, hand on her cheek, “Good heavens! What happened to you???” “I ran into some thieves and I think I broke my ankle-“But before Christian can continue explaining the old lady signals you to get inside, “Right this way!” The old lady with white hair, light blue dress with a white apron quickly ushers you and Christian in. You can see the displeased face of the man, but can’t really do anything for now. The lady stands next to a door right beside the entrance, “This way, on the couch.” You quickly help Christian into the room and help him lay down on the couch. The room seems to be quite big as you take a look around. The walls are wooden, or at least look like wood, with a beautiful crystal chandelier in the center and two big comfortable looking couches facing a TV. The long curtains seem to be covering the windows in the two sides, one looking towards the corral and the other in the direction of the entrance.

“Okay, let’s see…” The old lady takes off the shoes and socks off of Christian’s foot, “Oh!” she exclaims looking slightly worried, which makes you take a peek at Christian’s incredibly swollen ankle, “What’s wrong?” He asks slightly alarmed, to which the lady answers with a smile, “Nothing, it should be fine with a little ice and rest. I’ll be right back.” She then makes her way to the hallway. After a few seconds you notice Karrablast is missing, but before you can call for it then man speaks from the door you entered from, “Your Karrablast didn’t seem to want to enter, so it is waiting outside.” You decide to take a look at the Karrablast yourself with Christian being tended to on the couch and head outside for a moment, seeing the Karrablast look inside the house from the steps outside the porch. “Marrrr!” screeches something in the direction of the corral, “Karra?” The Karrablast looks towards that direction, with you following to the side of the porch, holding on to the rail, you see the Mareep trying to run around from two black shadows that look like wolves or dogs…

What will you do?

Asking for help had been a good idea after all. The very thought was enough to make Levin a little bit happier, both for poor Chris and for himself as well, in dire need of good tidings as he was.

Before he can properly thank the old lady, the less-than-welcoming man told him that Karrablast had preferred to remain outside. Levin really couldn't blame it, considering how weary it had grown of humans. Still, it'd be best to check on him, as Chris was now finally in capable hands. In a way, it was a good change of pace.

Heading outside, he spotted Karrablast turning his attention to the Mareep corral. Following with his eyes from the porch, a wave of apprehension washed over him as the sheep had begun yelling in a panic... but he couldn't quite tell why until a little while later. In the distance, two indistinct shadows seemed to be approaching... squinting to form a clearer picture, Levin still failed to properly identify them, but he took all the information he needed: two quadruped predators.

Jumping over the rail, Levin's mind raced as to how he could prevent the upcoming disaster; after all, considering how helpful they'd been, protecting these people's property was the least he could do! If they had to rely on livestock to make a living, it was a safe assumption that losing the Mareep would be problematic for them.

He ran through his options in his mind; most likely, and best-case scenario, the attackers would simply be two Poochyena. But there was a chance they could be Mightyena instead, or even worse, Houndour-line. Only one of his Pokemon was big enough to scare them away, and he'd appreciate the challenge as well, so the choice seemed rather obvious...

- Go, Buster!!

Emerging from his Pokeball, the Heracross jumped in excitement as he realized he'd been called to action. Adding to his size and prowess, his type could also be very advantageous if Levin's assessment was correct.

- Buster, protect the Mareep at all costs! Fly in front of it to shield it, then show them you mean business with a Swords Dance! If they get the message and flee, great; otherwise, make them regret it with a Rock Smash on each of them!

Allishinca Your little rascal for a partner, named Little Gar, seems to be having the time of his life in this area as you start your adventure, swinging from burnt tree branches to burnt tree branches, with you watching with worry as his many close calls with the weak branches happen, but you seem to have other things in mind as well, wanting to find out what happened in these barren lands so long ago. It seems like the fire left little to admire here, as you continue to walk past burnt trees and ash. You can hear the random Geodude grumbling and rolling around, but they don’t seem to want to get anywhere near you as they roll away when you get close to them.

It doesn't seem like anything is going to happen, that is until you then notice a rather odd looking ball on the ground. Little Gar also sees you looking at the curious looking ball and comes down from the tree, completely mesmerized by the ball before taking a step closer to it, and just as he does, the wheat colored ball unrolls, revealing a mouse like creature. "Sannnnnnd", it yawns, rubbing its eyes. It then turns its head towards you and Little Gar, "Sand?" it asks with its head tilted, as if trying to ask what you want or what you are doing there…

How will you respond?

A quick tumbling of footprints indicated Little Gar's mad dashed through the singed trees as he dived up another one. Hopping from branch to branch, he flung himself towards a bare trunk and twirled down it. Alli dashed up towards her Pokemon, but he rarely ever stood still and quickly frolicked away. When Alli reached the spot he had landed on, she took a moment to catch her breathe before carrying on deeper into the dead woods. Cinder ash laid everywhere in this grim land, as the wind stirred it up into tiny mini twisters before dispersing. The soft drudging of ash hummed as Alli staggered through it, interrupted only by the sharp snap of a branch as Little Gar again ascended up a tree while carelessly avoiding disaster. Alli kept her eyes focused on the little red fur until a gentle noise drew her attention. From afar, Alli noticed round rocks rolling away. She watched fixated, unsure of what she was observing.
"Moving rocks? A Cherufe? Or..." Alli shoved her hand into her pocket while trying to pull forth her Pokedex. When she found it somehow snagged into place, she spun around once before pulling it out. Aiming it in front of her like a television remote, she returned the screen close to see what it said.

Geodude. The Rock Pokémon. Rock/Ground Type.

"Oh, it is a Pokemon." Alli waved to the tiny boulders, but they did not return her enthusiasm. When she began to approach them, they tumbled away an aloof manner. Seeing no point in pursuing the depressing little rocks, she turned her attention again to her hyperactive partner. Little Gar had risen to the top of a high tree, and stood hanging on the edge when he noticed a small speck of green below.

"Haldadoe!” Gar shouted excitedly while pointed below before diving off and swinging back towards the ground. Alli had just caught sight of her troublesome little companion, and squealed loudly had he propelled himself of off a lower branch right onto her face. She fell back in surprise, but Gar caught himself quickly, and dashed over to the small leaflet he had noticed. Alli sat up as she wiped her face while attempted to spit out all the dust and fur from her mouth.

"Gaaar!" Little Gar was not listening, but was instead leaning over the sapling in the most inquisitive manner. It was a small tree that had just bloomed forth from a seed. Being only a tiny stem and single leaf, it stood helpless in front of the mighty predator. Gar puffed himself up cockily before stomping mercilessly on the poor sapling. He then performed a ritualistic tribal dance around it. Alli got up and shooed Gar, who pranced away without a second thought. Looking down at the squished plant, she gently straighten out the bent stem and pointed it upwards. A light scratching from behind informed her that Gar was scurrying up another tree.

"Har-rump!" Little Gar walked onto a branch and jumped to the next tree.
Alli sighed and followed from below.

They continued onwards for some time with little events otherwise when Little Gar yipped out; "Hal-la-la-doe!" Alli turned, and found her Pokemon pointing to an oddity in this strange, barren land. It was some sort of weird, armored ball. "Hiba Hiba!" Cried Gar, as he climbed down from the tree.

"What is that?" Alli approached and leaned in to investigate. Gar did the same, and stood staring at it, as though transfixed. The strange rock sudden shook, catching both Alli and Little Gar off guard, and then unrolled. The creature that emerged was a drowsy rodent that rubbed its eyes sleepily. Alli reached back into her pocket and again pulled out her Pokedex. Aiming it at the defenseless creature, she waited to see what would come up on screen.

Sandshrew. The Mouse Pokemon. Ground Type.

"D'aw. Look how cute it is!" Alli swooned over the shrew as she cramped her Pokedex back down into her pocket. Little Gar turned away and, seeing a heavy, burnt branch on the ground, ran over and picked it up. Holding it over his head, he chanted proudly before darting back towards the Sandshrew in order to give it a good clubbing.

"Hiba! Hiba! Wek Et!" Alli stopped him this time by grabbing the branch right out of his hands.

"You be good! And lets not pick a fight with a Pokemon that has a type advantage against you." Little Gar thumped his foot, and threw a mini tantrum before taking off into a tree. Alli returning her attention to the Sandshrew, and watched as it flopped its head to the side in the most adorable manner. "Now don't you mind Little Gar. He's young, and we're just here looking for something." Alli wanted to pat the mouse Pokemon on the head, but decided on something else. Rummaging through her backpack, she pulled out Pokeball [4/5] and held it out to the little critter. "Would you like to come along? I could certainly use the help." Bopping the Sandshrew on the head with the Pokeball, she waited to see what would happen.

From up above, Little Gar watched the whole interaction anxiously,
ready to strike at his new-found foe should the time seem fit.

Memory Lane:Trepie: “Never a dull moment in Fizzy bubbles...” you think to yourself as you make your way down Memory Lane, and you’d be right. The area appears to be beautiful at first sight, breathtaking even, with carefully arranged flowers displayed occasionally on top of the gray concrete floor, or next to small trees, both with pictures of Pokémon and people. The beautiful exterior of the area seems to be covered in a gloomy aura, with people and Pokémon sitting down next to some flowers and just staring at them, with other trainers such as yourself taking a look around with their Pokémon.

You continue walking down the path, with Athene, that is until you suddenly stop moving midway through your next step, not voluntarily, but as if something has frozen you completely, weighing you down except for your eyes. You look around to the best your ability and see the area get darker, alarming you even more, and it seems that Tangrowth is just as surprised by this as her eyes widen. You and Athene continue to try and take a look around and see nothing in front of you but the slow darkening of the area. Finally, you continue on that step, turning your body around to take a look at what happened, and see nothing, the people, Pokémon and flowers seem to have disappeared!

Suddenly, Athene cries for your attention, and you turn to see a black, thick, smoke like substance materialize in front Athene, no bigger than a foot in length, height and width. The smoke begins to swirl, becoming bigger as it keeps spinning. You can help but back down a little as the smoke seems to be expanding, but it finally stops as the cloud of smoke expands to about 4 feet. Two smoke hands sprout from the smoke, and the smoke stays still for a second before moving a little closer to you and Athene, about 5 feet away from Athene, releasing a loud groan as it stops moving…

How will you respond?

The pair walked down Memory lane enjoying the tranquil morning. Auric would stop occasionally to admire the floral arrangments and pictures scattered about while Athene would pick something up to examine it before placing it back where she found it. Athene's curiosity was always keeping Auric on his toes. It was like she was trying to figure everything out even if it only made sense to her. It made her incredibly smart albeit a little strange. He'd often come back to their camp grounds to find she had built some strange contraption that would turn out to be helpful even if she was the only one who knew how it worked.

While the pair continued on the atmoshpere began to change. Before he knew what was happening Auric realized he felt almost paralyzed. He couldn't tell if it was fear or some other malevolent force. His eyes scanned the area, noticing a darkness was sweeping around them and everything he had seen in moments past was slowly fading into the shadows. Looking to his Tangrowth he could see her eyes were wide, though he doubted she was afraid. Athene was pretty rational and in situations like this she was more likely trying to understand what was happening then panicing. Auric on the other hand was feeling the fear. The only thing he could think was that this was some kind of attack on his mind. What ever this was it was trying to build fear, to make him afraid. Pushing his fear down he ragained control of his body.

Then he heard Athene "Tannnn..." Looking in her direction he saw a cloud of smoke rushing towards them. It was black in colour. Athene's eyes were locked on the ball of smoke, her arms slowly raising. Auric grabbed her arm and shook his head 'no' before she reached it. Within moments the smoke began to expand and increase it's size. Two smoke ridden hands emerged from the mass as it moved closer to the pair. Without cause it let lose a rather loud groan and stopped moving. Auric and Athene looked at each other for a moment before turning their full attention to the smokey figure in front of them. Auric could tell that all Athene wanted to do was to reach into the smoke and see what would happen. After all her vines grew back quick enough and she clearly wasn't afraid of what ever this thing was. He on the other hand wanted to play a little more defensively until they knew what they were dealing with. "Athene, I need you to use Ingrain." He said stepping behind her and to her left. "After that we're going to see exactly what this thing is. Since it has a thing for shadows and smoke we're going to clear things up a little. I want you to use Flash to brighten it up around here. If that doesn't get a reaction use a vine to Tickle it." Athene nodded and prepared herself for what ever came next.

Cloud ForestThrain: You can hear the struggling of the trainers from the front of the Pokémon Center, who seem to be too busy defending the front to respond, as they are telling their Pokémon attack orders. You then hear someone running to the door you are in front of, “They are all busy, but I can help you!” you hear a girl no more than 12 years old tell you, holding a Cubchoo in her hands, and right at that moment you hear something metallic get thrown inside the room, the door that once stopped the spiders from coming in. Cypress releases a cloud made of spores, using Sleep Powder on the two Ariados and two Galvantula that are coming out, which seems to work on the first four spiders as they run into the chair or wall before falling asleep with the sleep inducing attack. Meanwhile two more Ariados and a Galvantula come out of the vent, all of which are met with a blast to the face by Blaze’s Flamethrower, screeching in pain, running around to put out the fire. You then see a small blue figure run past you, and heads towards the Ariados, Slashing one of the Ariados in the face, “Good job Snowy!” She then turns to you, “I’ll handle one of the Ariados, and you can take on the other two! Be careful not to wake up the Ariados and Galvantula that are sleeping on the sides!” She warns you, standing outside the room as her Cubchoo growls at the Ariados with the Aridos and Galvantula pair locking looks with Blaze and Cypress...

What will you do?

(If you want to do a double battle, you can use two attack per Pokémon per round)

As Eric's orders and cry for help died away, commotion filled the Pokemon Centre as several other waves of spiders managed to infiltrate the front of the building. Thankfully, a young girl of twelve years old heard his plea for assistance and ran into the back room with a Cubchoo in hand. "They are all busy, but I can help you." Eric nodded his thanks to the young girl as the metal grate finally gave way. Two Ariados and two Galvantula scuttled into the room, clicking rapidly in excitement. Dismissing his momentary anger at the Growlithe, Cypress complied with Eric's command and summoned a Sleep-inducing Powder that filled the air. All four of the spiders ingested the spores and fell asleep seconds later, but another wave of arachnids joined the first. Blaze summoned his fiery energy in a Flamethrower that scorched all three of the spiders that were awake. A small, blue blur rushed past and and Slashed one of the Ariados on top of the fire move, inflicting further damage. The Cubchoo retreated backward as it received praise from the girl, ready for the next round. The Ariados he had slashed cornered the Ice type, while the remaining Ariados and the Galvantula confronted Blaze and Cypress.

"I'll handle one of the Ariados, and you can take on the other two! Be careful not to wake up the Ariados and Galvantula that are sleeping on the sides," the girl warned as she turned her attention towards her Cubchoo.

"All right, let's try to finish this quickly so we can go help the others." Eric's mind turned back to Steven and Nurse Joy; he hoped that they were okay.

Turning to the matter at hand, Eric concentrated on forming a strategy to complement this puzzling situation. Again his thoughts turned to why the spiders were attacking the Centre in the first place. Just what provoked them to do this...? The lost shipment of Poke supplies must be involved somehow...

"Cypress, use Stun Spore, then follow it up with a Poisonpowder. Get as many spiders as you can, whether they're alseep or not. Be careful where you aim so you won't hit Blaze or Snowy. Blaze, go in close with a Stream of Fire afterwards. If any spiders wake up, attack with your Fiery Fangs."

FIRESTREAM - For approximately five seconds, the user forcefully spits out a stream of fiery, molten hot bubbles dealing very good damage at a constant rate. A slightly less powerful version of Flamethrower, yet the odds of being burned when the bubbles "pop" painfully on the opponent's skin is increased by approximately 20% due to the intensity of the heat trapped inside each bubble.

Apologies for the long wait, everyone. It's been a really rough past few months for me, although it may not have been apparent.

That being said, once the new semester starts I will unfortunately be taking an official absence from Updating in order to focus on my studies. I may try to squeeze another set in before my break ends, but we'll see. (I'm getting Skyward Sword tonight, so I'm sure I'll be busy with that for a while. *shot*)

Also, if you still wish to continue your Adventure, takkupanda, I've included the next installment here.

Without further ado, here are some end-of-the-year Updates!

Sky Gate

Shadowshocker – Taryn listens respectfully as you tell your own tale of woe, and taps her cheek in sympathetic concern.

“That is a bit of a pickle…” She follows your line of sight towards the Murkrow and nods.

“I’ll see what I can do. I could certainly try to talk with Jacob, though from the looks of things I’m not sure if he remembers me.” She glances up again at the dark spectator and shudders slightly. “…However, birds aren’t really my area of expertise. The only natural avian I’ve actually associated closely with is my Altaria.” Leaning closer, she adds in awkward confidence: “To be honest, their feathers kinda frighten me. I’m somewhat allergic to them.”

Shaking her head for suddenly sharing something so shameful considering her position, not to mention once more off-topic, she quickly tries to steer the conversation back. “In fact, the Pidgey at the Hero’s Festival belonged to my colleague. If you want, he can probably assist you. He’s hosting the show now, but it sounds like it’s almost over. You should go see the finale, it’s really quite a special sight. I’ll speak to Mike afterwards and we’ll wait for you backstage if you require a hand in handling the situation, how’s that?”

She smiles and reaches out to console your shoulder. With a wink, she whispers: “Don’t worry about your Drifloon, I’m sure he’ll be fine. I can sense these Murkrow don’t mean any harm at least. We’ll get him back safely.

As for Jacob, kids can be surprisingly attuned to the world of adults. He may be more aware of things than we know. Hiding secrets tends to only hurt them more. They can certainly sense when something’s wrong. Years of counseling children has taught me that. My only mistake – that I deeply regret to this day – was not being able to be there for him when he needed it, in order to guide him through the healing process… I know the flock feels it’s probably protecting its friend, but as long as it keeps him on ‘life support’, so to speak, he’ll never be able to move on.”

The crow cranes closer upon catching word of its comrades, but the woman switches subject immediately. She points to the plushie in your palms before pressing it closed, the warm contact of her skin suffusing. “In your case, maybe instead of trying to trick him into thinking the doll is a replacement, give it to him straight as a ‘real’ gift and see how he responds? You might not even have to explain everything in full, but if you do decide to tell him the truth, be gentle about it…”

With that advice, she pats your back and pushes gently towards the seats (your shadow follows silently), where Jacob is watching the display with wide eyes. He grins as you approach and shifts to allow space for you to sit.

You startle, realizing you forgot to completely conceal the prize you won this time, after having exposed it to Taryn to illustrate both living and dead examples of outcomes. Fortunately, Jacob grows distracted by a burst of artificial light and sparkles from the stage as the aerial brigade makes a finishing dive towards the trainer, who bows to applause with all of his talented acrobats balanced on his arms. He then sends each one off again to explore the fair until the next performance, which he warns will be the last and most spectacular based on the schedule so better tell your friends if they missed out, before disappearing behind the curtain. You glance up to note the sun has passed the high point and started to sink towards the horizon. Time flies when having fun, so they say…

Jacob continues to clap enthusiastically, causing Doldrum to clearly dizzify from all the shaking. Though he too seems exhilarated by the event as he raises a heart to his tape and whistles in appreciation, waving as the stars soar by. Jacob turns and beams at you, still stirring with excitement.

“Wow! Was-n’t that cool? What’s next?”

As the families on either side start to stand up and squeeze past, Jacob tucks in his knees and stares as a pair of parents happily pick their child up, hoisting her high above the crowd so she doesn’t get squashed. Despite a cheerful expression, your companion sags slightly.

What will you do now?

The Space Path

tau – ¤Repost of Your Last Update¤

The mobile mounts to the heavens, more menacing than if it led straight to hell. All its gleam and glitter belies a gloomy history. Those who had gone chasing rainbows at the end of gold in the past had never returned. Perhaps the same fate awaits the pair who stood before the path today, nervous but eager for the challenge. You’ve survived worse fare than this before. Still, as your feet contact the first step, you fear they may fall straight through the pellucid plane. The bridge holds firm though, and together you and Banzai ascend into space.

As you walk, the sky deepens from blue to black. Stars surround, welcome guides on your one-way journey to nowhere. Despite not knowing the destination, their support makes you feel safe and secure.

One of them outshines the others. It flashes, blinking brighter and wider. Then it falls, a pinprick cast from paradise. The little angel streaks downward, paper white wings trailing behind. A part of you worries it might miss the thin strip of mobile and travel all the way down to eternal torment. Following its trajectory however, it lands somewhere down the road, which shakes slightly upon impact. Surprisingly, it’s not enough to upset your balance. You consult Banzai, whose curiosity piques as much as yours. Simultaneously, the two of you take off at full speed to investigate.

You see smoke rising soon, much quicker than you had expected. The proximity puzzles you, especially given the lack of tremor felt earlier. As you draw close, you find the path pock-marked by a couple minor craters, almost microscopic. As if formed by minute pebbles striking the surface. Up ahead, you notice one larger than the others. Creeping closer, you peer into the smoldering pit to find a strange sight: a metal cylinder with a “P” painted on the side (“P” for Pocket Ship?), surrounded by a group of the smallest Spinda you’ve ever seen, stumbling chaotically as they try to coordinate after the crash. They’re barely larger than your thumb, and are all wearing colored spacesuits and helmets.

One of them looks up and sees you staring. Its eyes spin in surprise, and it reaches for something by its side. You watch curiously as it fumbles in fear, finally managing to point the ray gun at you. It’s unclear whether its unsteadiness stems from natural disorientation or the circumstances. Still, before you can react, it fires the weapon directly at your face. You feel a slight stab on your neck instead (so much for its aim, but considering the size of its target it was bound to hit). The world reels around you, and stars seem to flee from your sight, soaring even higher.

You hear a loud sound, and swerve around to confront a wall of white, blocking access back. Confused, you reach out to touch the foreign substance, which you find is composed of individual soft strands. Beneath the fibers, warmth emanates.

Suddenly, the mass starts to shift, and you reduce to your rear in astonishment. Gazing up, you can hardly believe your eyes. Banzai’s baffled expression examines you, his features enlarged many more times than normal. You’re about to ask the cliché question: “How did you get so big?” when you remember the pain in your vein. That’s right, you were the one hit by the beam. Which means…

Gulping, you turn slowly to discover yourself encircled by Spinda, now normal size compared to before (at least in your current perception). Numerous pairs of swirling eyes swim in your vision, making you grow dizzy. The leader steps forward – presumably the same one who shot previously, judging by what little you could tell of its facial pattern through the thick plastic bubble (and formerly indistinct stature). It fiddles a bit with the gun’s settings, which seem to be stuck somewhat, before raising it again at your forehead. “SPIN DA!” it chants, which you assume is a demand for an immediate explanation of your person and purpose, or else it’ll really blow your brains out this time. Difficult to tell whether it’s bluffing or not. Although considering this appears to be alien technology you’re dealing with, even if broken it could quite possibly vaporize your entire body anyway. You shudder, unsure which outcome would be worse.

How will you react?

The Rose Arch

DaisyInari – ¤Repost of Your Last Update¤

You accept the pair’s proposal with unbridled glee, ready to assist the bride and groom in whatever way possible. As you fuss over your unflattering appearance, Lily grins and assures you she knows the perfect stylist who’ll help fix you up. She takes your hand and starts to lead you and Sunny to one side of the path, abandoning the bewildered boys by the opposite border. You catch a glimpse of two vines creeping out from the hedge to capture the two and drag them kicking into the undergrowth, where presumably they’ll be prepped or perhaps probed in private. You smile with awkward amusement, hoping some intimacy (eau my) will help them to sort out their problems.

Meanwhile, moving in the direction of the arch – the only proper place to hold such a momentous service – you can’t help but feel fault for forgetting something. But fantabulousness- er, a favor to a newfound friend comes first, plus you haven’t forgiven Natu yet for that fear-filling fall stunt it pulled. Still, you can’t shake the sense of Natu’s song filling your mind, almost sounding stronger with each step…

However, you are soon distracted by finding yourself suddenly flung into the open arms of a Leavanny, whose warm foliage envelops as she smothers you against her blossom. According to Sunny, you’re “simply the most darling human child” Ms. Ivy’s ever seen. As she strokes your windswept hair though, she winces as she finds and shakes loose little leaves and pollen, which causes you to sneeze straight on her. You blush and fumble for a tissue to offer, but as soon as she sees the filthy wad she wrinkles her nose and politely declines, instead using a sheet from a nearby shrub. Lifting your chin, she shakes her head at your runny nose and red eyes, dabbing gently at your puffed cheeks with a fresh portion of a different plant. You feel some sort of film on the surface, fermenting heat. In addition, its sharp aroma stings a bit, but miraculously clears your sinuses. Soon you can see and smell seamlessly again, and you can only assume your looks have improved as well.

Lily nods in approval, and winks at Ivy, who absently waves her antenna as she scrutinizes the rest of her subject, staring at the clashing clothing colors with a sigh. Lily coughs quietly, and mildly mentions her upcoming marriage. Almost as if realizing the true star’s presence for the first time, Ivy swerves around in surprise. She looks shocked, perhaps hesitant for a moment. Then she smiles and hastens to hug her friend, covering her with congratulatory kisses. Clapping twice, a Bellossom and Whimsicott abruptly appear by her side. She appoints the two to take care of Lily and Sunshine for now, promising she’ll be with them herself in a moment. However, she simply must do something about your hair first. Lily smiles as she follows Bellossom behind a bush while Whimsicott shoos Sunshine around a wall of woods, leaving you in Leavanny’s capable hands – or leaves, rather.

Ivy clucks as she appraises your head again, and sets to work plucking, pulling, and pruning to perfection. She snips feverishly but with finesse and flair, not to mention the finest shears that would make any gardener green with envy. As soon as she finishes with an air of satisfaction, her assistants sprout again, this time apparently equipped with measurements. Ivy nods and accepts them, then uses her own limbs to assess your altitude and breadth. You giggle as the green tickles your skin, squirming so much the other two are forced to help hold you still.

Once your intimate information is gathered, the group retreats into the trees, and you wait patiently to see what will happen. They soon return, arms inflated with an abundance of plant materials. Laying them all down, Ivy carefully harvests the prettiest specimens from the pile and weaves a beautiful wedding dress before your eyes, lined with perfect white lilies and goldenrod trim. For a veil, she spins her own silk into a shroud, soft and ethereal. She allows you to touch the slight substance, reminding you of the down beneath a baby bird’s wing, but at the same time wavy as water, before handing both garments to Bellossom to deliver to the bride.

For Sunshine, she selects a simple sunflower pattern. (You wonder if, given the garden’s seemingly static climate state, every species of flower blooms out of season here.) No tattoos or tail extensions, just all-natural green mixed with earthy browns and bright yellows. Whimsicott whisks the outfit away to swathe Swablu, and finally it’s your turn.

Ivy makes you a masterpiece to match the others, blending a buttercup blouse with fluttery, feather-like frills on the bottom. The soft skirt is formed from pale petals, partly pellucid. A few colorful blossom sequins and berry beads hem the edges, stitched with slight but strong silk. Binding both top and base around your small belly is her namesake: a lace belt of vines wrapped in a beautiful Butterfree bow in the back. Something seems to be lacking though… In a flash of inspiration, she fetches some fresh daisies from a wild patch nearby and fashions a crown to festoon your hair. Stepping back to admire her work, she smiles and nods approvingly, holding up an orb of dew for you to see your reflection.

Ivy then gives you another affectionate embrace, a gesture meant to assure you’ll do great. Whimsicott and Bellossom return at this point, carrying a grass basket overflowing with vibrant flowers. They hand it over to you and usher towards the path, indicating the ceremony is about to begin. Ivy waves good luck before retreating to the other two’s dressing rooms, in order to attend to any final fixes personally. Before you can register the brisk beating of your heart, you’re striding down the aisle strewing petals from side to side. A crowd of Grass Pokémon has gathered, drawn by Bellossom’s SWEET SCENT as the bridesmaids walk ahead of you. A blush rises to your cheeks as you feel all eyes on the only human girl in the procession and your pace stiffens, but the tenderness of Leavanny’s touch remains in mind, and you hold your head up high. Feet even start to skip slightly.

Approaching the Arch, you spot Rose and Victor already at the altar, also decked out in formal floral wear. Two twin Servine stand off to the side, apparently resisting the urge to fuss over Victor’s drooping boutionniere. Only his menacing glare keeps them at bay. Meanwhile, Rose’s resolve appears to be wilting rapidly as well. He shuffles nervously on frozen roots until it looks like he’s about to make a break for it. Victor grabs the groom’s ankle though, making sure he stays put. Though still bitter about being best man to such a wimp, Victor seems to relish this part of his duty as he slaps sense repeatedly into Rose, telling the one who proposed in the first place he’d better take responsibility for Lily or else. If he breaks her heart, Victor won’t forgive him. Even after Rose nods meekly, Victor continues to punish the poor plant, and the Servine are forced to step in and separate the two. You sigh and shake your head, smiling slightly. Perhaps this type of relationship between them is for the best, as Rose appears to take the admonishment to heart and remains standing straight and firm at his spot, wearing bruises but more confidence than before.

As you conveniently empty the container and join the bridesmaids under the Arch, you hear a familiar voice singing “Here Comes the Bride” from behind, and all attention turns to the back. The bride makes her grand entrance, the gown you saw before even more stunning on her than by itself. Rose is struck dumb, and even Victor seems taken aback by how much the clothes complement his cousin’s beauty. Behind her, Sunshine holds the train and hums proudly in her best pitch. (Is it just you, or is there an echo somewhere?) To the side, you can spot Ivy sneaking and squeezing into a reserved seat up front, not wanting to miss her work’s debut best friend’s happiest moment. You notice her pull out a leaf and dab at her eyes as the bride passes by to a chorus of “Oohs” and “Aahs”.

Lily advances to the altar, passing her bouquet to Sunshine before smiling and taking Rose’s own outstretched arrangement. Together, they kneel down before a Parasect as it delivers the vows. Strangely, it sprinkles some soil and drops of water over the couple’s heads before telling them to rise and face towards the sun. Sunny whispers to you that this meant to represent the trinity of Mother Nature, which all plants need to survive. Now that they’ve promised to share all resources from now on, may She bless their matrimony with plenty of food, water, and sun. Upon standing, they exchange corsages instead of rings, personally pinning their own respective signatures on the other partner. Rose fumbles with the process a bit, and Victor rolls his eyes while Lily waits patiently.

Finally, to complete the communion, they must both drink from the same bowl, carefully crafted from leaves and mud. The water has been left out to absorb the light, and to it they each add a petal, a piece of themselves. They take small sips in turn, and the Pareacher addresses the congregation, asking if anyone who knew a reason the two should not be wed to speak now, or forever hold their peas. Lily shoots Victor a scathing look before he can even open his mouth, and you suppress a giggle. …Strangely, to your left, the corner of your eye senses Ivy crumpling her leaf with a sigh. Still, there is silence.

Without protest, the Pareacher pronounces the two Stamen and Pistil, and they seal the bond with a kiss as the water dribbles down to their roots. The audience erupts into cheers, and takes the role of showering the couple with dust and roses rather than rice. Tears stream down your face as you grab Sunny’s wings and blow your nose into the cotton, much to her disgust.

Lily turns to your sobbing self and smiles. Detaching a Gold Leaf from her garland, she lightly presses it into your palm to thank you for helping make this possible. After somewhat successfully shaking some snot off, Sunshine hands the bouquet back to the bride, and you perk up in anticipation of the next step, stepping back to prepare. Lily tosses the bunch high over her shoulders, and the crowd surges forward to try and catch it. Despite your tiny stature, you still manage to tower over most Pokémon to avoid being trampled, though their many roots and vines threaten to trip. Remaining focused on the prize, your eyes follow the flowers faithfully as they fly towards the sun, the bright background forming a blinding halo…

The watchers wait with bated breath. But the bouquet never comes back down. In a blink, it seems to have vanished. Everyone glances about in confusion, some even peering into the bushes in case it fell off course. Lily shrugs, assuring all there’ll be plenty of flowers at the reception. She and Rose step forward to lead the way, and aside from the truly desperate/determined, the rest eagerly tag along for free food and fun. Curiously, among the lingerers is Leavanny, who listlessly picks up a rose and begins to slowly strip it down to the stem…

Again, you feel a peculiar prick at the back of your mind. The party has passed, but the music marches on – at least in your mind. In fact, it continues to crescendo even as the band rounds the bend. The song seems to be coming from just above the Arch...

Do you chase after the parade? Or perhaps stay and talk to Ivy/check the source of the sound?

Charminions – The maid listens quietly as you make your speech, eyeing the Combee cradled in your palms with growing sympathy. She then turns to Amanda.

“Is what this cretin says true, milady?”

The girl nods, and Lillian flips up her feather duster, withdrawing her heel as well. Her static, slightly unnerving smile remains the same as she offers a hand to help you up.

“My apologies, sir. Let’s get this Combee to the hospital then. We shall take the car in that case, and you may ride in the back.”

She glances at the butler, who seems less inclined to believe your story but straightens respectfully. “Most certainly, straight away.” He pulls out a cellular and makes a quick call. To your surprise, a few seconds later you hear the rumble of an engine, and whirl around to see a long limousine swerving into view, completely ignorant of the grass. It pulls up in front of the forest and pauses to lower down the window a few inches as Lillian leans over to whisper a few words. Try as you might to stand on tiptoe, you cannot peer over her back, within or through the dark glass to get a glimpse of the driver. However, the effort proves worthless anyway as Lillian moves aside to allow the chauffeur to step out. (Although his features are still mostly obscured by his hat.) Without a sound, he opens the door to the vehicle and bows, waiting patiently for the party to get in.

Amanda enters first, followed by the butler. When it comes to your turn, any misgivings you might have are swept aside as the maid clamps your shoulders and practically plops you forcefully onto the plush seats, squeezing in next to you with a wide beam that makes your face flush. You squirm a little as you feel her leg brush up beside yours, the contact of smooth, creamy skin driving your “pure” soul almost into a frenzy (though another part of your discomfort stems from the fact you feel she has her trusty feather duster hidden somewhere under those frills, still trained on you). From the opposite side you can sense the butler glaring at you warily, with little Amanda watching by his side, so you smartly swallow any sort of lustful comment or complaint. The side then slams shut as the footman’s feet fade, and you shrink into the cushions, hardly able to enjoy the luxury as you wonder just what sort of crazy compartment you’ve gotten yourself stuck in. Something tells you the handle is probably locked too…

Just then, the cabin jerks, and you gasp, quickly trying to cover Combee as you realize you’re making a swift u-turn. You grimace and hold onto your lunch as the limo backs up onto the RainbowRoadand begins racing down the stretch towards the Sky Gate, rolling over rocks in the way without warning. The other three lean nonchalantly along with the abrupt movements, as if anticipating them. Seems they’re quite familiar with this route, or perhaps just accustomed to such insane steering. The maid even pulls out a nail file and attends to her digits in the meantime, whilst the butler presses a few more buttons on his phone to dial another number. Between trying not to fall face-first into Lillian’s chest and keeping your rapidly pounding heart in your own, you manage to catch snatches of the conversation.

“We have located the young miss. She seems to be safe. However, we are taking a detour to the Pokémon Center in order to accompany a- ahem, ‘suspected’ kidnapper and an injured Combee for Nurse Joy to care for.” A pause. “You will meet us there? Understood. Very well, sir.” Another beat, and he answers quietly. “Yes, I’m sure she knows tomorrow’s the anniversary…”

There are a few more exchanges, but a sudden bump makes you miss them. After he hangs up, you notice Amanda frowning at the phone. She then becomes aware of you staring and sticks out her tongue before gazing out the window. Unable to remark on such rudeness in the presence of two overprotective guardians, you bite your tongue and follow her view to see that you’ve arrived at the…

Sky Gate

Gratefully breathing in fresh air after that ordeal, you barely notice the greater than usual bustle of activity as people congregate towards what appears to be a festival in front of the entrance to the garden. As you fight your way to the Pokémon Center’s access, it suddenly swings open and collides with your nose. A boy carrying a pamphlet brushes past, oblivious, but you struggle to keep silent, shaking your head. Your only thought is to bring the dying Combee inside the building before its condition grows any worse. Stumbling within, you are briefly aware of the butler catching the knob and holding it for the “young miss”, while the maid parts the crowd (as they gather around the parked expensive machine) and keeps them at bay. Figures.

You don’t bother to express jealousy however, as the first thing you do is carry Combee over to the counter and place it down as gently as possible. Nurse Joy seems to be preoccupied though, staring off into space for some strange reason… Impatient, you ring the bell, and she snaps directly into an overly cheerful greeting, which disturbingly reminds you of Lillian. You are both soon distracted from the awkward encounter however as she perceives the bee before her, and exclaims in shock at its level of injury. Cooing over the creature, she assures you she’ll fix it up right away and orders Chansey to place it on a stretcher, disappearing with it into the operating room.

Sighing with relief, you turn in time to see the glass slide ajar again, and another man with a well-groomed appearance rushes in. He seems younger and his attire more sophisticated than the butler, though his emotions are much more exposed. Spotting Amanda, he runs over and picks her up.

“There you are! Your mother and I were so concerned! Come on, dear, let’s head home and apologize for making her sad, shall we?”

The girl wiggles out of his grasp though and sets her bare heel down. The father’s eyes widen at her apparent lack of slipperwear, but before he can even remark, “Why, whatever happened to your shoes?”, his daughter starts screaming at the top of her lungs.

“SHE’S NOT MY MOTHER! AND I’M NOT SAYING SORRY!”

Everyone in the lobby stops what they’re doing and stares at the scene. The father fumbles with his shirt collar, uncomfortable at the attention he was attracting.

Amanda won’t hear any of it, however, and darts past her dad. While the maid and butler hasten to block, she easily dodges their outstretched hands and scurries outside, vanishing into the masses.

“Amanda, darling, come back!” the father cries desperately, but his voice is lost amongst the sea of tourists.

How do you respond?

takkupanda – Despite the toxins plaguing his system and growing desperation of the situation – or rather because of it – Broly bravely dashes towards your backpack and tug it open with his teeth. You watch in confusion as he digs doggedly through the contents, worried what he could be up to at such a crucial time. …Surely he wasn’t planning to desert as well? But any doubts are soon proven wrong as he raises his head with triumph, and clamped in his jaws is a brilliant stone of amber. It begins to glow white, which engulfs Growlithe before you can even say a word, forced to simply shield your eyes from the brightness.

When it fades, your proud pup now stands bolder and beautiful, a fully grown Arcanine. You gasp in admiration at such a determined move on his part. With renewed heart and strength, Broly turns to the now comparatively tiny bugs and grins, bellowing to show he won’t back down. The bees tremble in terror, hardly having expected to face a tank when their own services are down. Seems they’re starting to regret picking such a senseless fight with someone as smart and strong as yourself (or rather your teammates in this case).

Relieved to receive reinforcements in the nick of time, Nova is eager to fall back and support its partner from behind. Though the host is down, spinning helps to save the data on the hard drive, and it manages to escape from the server spiders. It then launches a rapid round of sniper-shots, light bombs that burst into stars upon contact with the enemy. The Beedrill buzz in mild pain – but more so annoyance, snapping back to attention. Despite daunting odds, they wouldn’t give up this battle so easily. It was time to pull out all the stops.

One of them faces Nova and glares, giving all its Grass Energy towards GIGA DRAINing the Starmie of its health. Nova flashes in agony, and Broly barks with anger, stepping forward once again to defend his friend. Though he tries to watch his footing to avoid triggering any more mines, the other Beedrill is not about to let him get away with acting the hero. It fires a STRING SHOT around his larger legs, trapping them together. He trips and falls on several leftover spikes, howling as they assault his skin again.

Still, he manages to maneuver his mouth around and unleashes another wave of flames towards both foes, and they shriek, the second immediately stopping the sapping. Calling upon the kamikaze fighter within, the other whirls around and crashes into the canine with a DOUBLE-EDGEd blade, still burning as it intends to go down in a blaze of glory. Broly groans as he rolls back onto yet another barb, but having anticipated the attack he grunts and musters a vortex inferno that ensnares his captor in turn. It cries out as the embers exact justice on its body, finally falling to the ground, fainted.

Seeing its partner defeated, the other soldier panics, pitifully pulling its wings towards itself as it pleads for forgiveness. Nova shows no mercy though, not after what the bug did to it. It blasts the Beedrill with as much emotional grief to match the physical level it had caused. The insect falters, but somehow remains flying. It is then that you realize its withdrawn gesture served as a sort of makeshift shelter in an attempt to ENDURE whatever came next, and shout a warning to Nova (without even wasting time to wonder where the opponent could have learned such an advanced technique – though strange feats can be achieved when one is driven against a wall). However, it’s too late, as the Beedrill unwraps itself and rams into Nova in a last-ditch ENDEAVOR. Nova crumples, barely blinking as it struggles to stand. They stare each other, panting, either a single tip away from exhaustion…

At that moment, Ursaring comes bearing down and swats carelessly at the bug, sending it spiraling into the sky until it’s simply a speck. You glance over to find the rest of the swarm scattered about, a bloody battlefield of broken warriors and spirits. You can’t help but whistle, impressed.

Ursaring slowly swerves and staggers towards you, and it takes you a second to realize she’s reaching out for Teddiursa, who gurgles joyfully against your grasp. Before its mother can take two strides though, she collapses, and you are shocked to see the number of welts on her back. Both bears need medical attention, and fast – as does Broly. Nova too is on the brink of fatigue. You bite your lip, gazing around at your poor wounded party. You may have won the war, but at what cost?

Just then, you hear a rustle in the bushes, and glance curiously over, seeing to your surprise the Weedle from earlier. It appears to be dragging some sort of sack made of leaves, filled to the brim with bright pink Pecha Berries.

blazeVA – Despite the daunting foe before you, Lemon Drop pumps her paws in preparation. You force yourself to choke back a chuckle of amusement at her adorableness, finally understanding why Bill and Ian had laughed at her appearance. Still, looks can be deceiving, and you have full faith in her abilities. She’ll show this boulder bully and the rest of the band (not to mention her buddy Blaze <3) who’s boss. No one gets away with calling her a pipsqueak – or making fun of her friends, for that matter!

Of course, Marche can’t be counted out for this fight either, and of course can be counted on too to prove his pride. So while his partner primes an attack, you whisper a plan for keeping up with her pace. He nods and starts scraping his skin against the stones, smoothing to reduce air resistance. In the meantime, Lemon Drop races fearlessly towards Gigalith, ready to sock it to him good. With a side-step and elegant spin-jump, she plants a perfect punch on the bottom of his jaw. Caught unawares, he is forced to stumble back, surprised by the power such a tiny Pokémon could pack. Landing with a nimble leap, Lemon Drop grins cheekily as Gigalith groans and rubs his chin, putting up her fists for another go. She dances circles about him and sticks out her tongue, revealing whatever she may lack in size and strength she makes up for with fancy footwork.

She then begins to charge up another blow by swinging her arm in wide arcs. Unfortunately her gloating gets in the way this time, as Gigalith easily sees it coming and HARDENs himself. What he doesn’t expect though is for Marche to bring the other half of brawn (as well as brain) to the table, launching himself with sudden speed at the opponent’s base to collide with and collapse one of his legs. Gigalith grunts as he drops to his knee, and Lemon Drop takes advantage of the opportunity to follow up with a second roundhouse. However, thanks to his toughened exterior, Gigalith is more annoyed by this attempt than anything. To her horror, it only causes him to roar and respond by BLASTing ROCKs in her face. She squeals in pain as she’s sent flying back, pinned helplessly under one of the projectiles.

Gigalith then gets back up and faces the other mild irritant, answering the Geodude’s cheap shot with one of his own by SLAPping MUD in Marche’s eyes. Marche curses as he blinks and tries to rub the grain out, but to no avail. In his blindness, he accidentally bumps into a rock formation and topples it nearly onto you, giving Gigalith more glee as you desperately dodge the falling blocks. With both “insects” incapacitated, Gigalith finishes by whipping up a SANDSTORM as if to simply blow them away. Lemon Drop coughs and spits as the filth strikes her fur, her sensitive flesh not meant for such a harsh spa treatment as her comrade received earlier. While Marche doesn’t suffer as much from the weather conditions due to his affinity, it does worsen the grit in his gaze, making it even more difficult to see.

Gathering your stance again, you also squint in order to glare at Gigalith, who so far seems to hardly be taking the battle seriously, seeing you and your Pokémon as literal bugs on a windshield. Charlie is still quiet or comatose, oblivious to both the squall and squabble raging outside, though Keith clatters with concern, and you don’t require a translator to tell what he means. Looks like you’re gonna have to step up your game if you want to get anywhere with this big guy.

What are your next orders?

(Yes, there is apparently mud and sand in the Rock Garden. I wrote yours last at 6 AM, sorry if it's not up to stuff. x.X)

Treepandaone – Though the frosty air makes your hand itch to pull a pack of cigarettes, push away the dark and bitter thoughts swirling in your soul by drowning it in more smoke, the smiles of your young Pokémon stay. They are more than enough to warm your heart, and you hug them close as you call to mind memories as medicine instead. Fonder ones of the first Christmas spent with your mates, a time you will never forget.

Evidence of feeling falls down your face, and you wipe it away quickly. Emboldened, you decide you will run with the wind. Chase change, embrace it.

You walk along the wall, letting the breeze blow against your back, guiding to your destination. On eyesight’s edge, the chimney by the road slowly slides from view.

As you approach the hill, the storm suddenly picks up stronger. The tree rustles and waves, as if coming alive to greet you. You seek to interpret the flames’ movement as they dance, the most ancient art of communication. Pure, primitive. Coming close, you reverently touch the bark, tough and gnarled with age. Age associates with wisdom. There must be magic and power here, if only you are able to access it. Gazing up at the branches high above, so thick and widespread they block the sun, you close your lids as gold showers rain down, as if granting Mother Nature’s blessing. Washing away the sadness in your lungs.

As light slants through the leaves, it shines upon a hole in the trunk. Curious, you attempt to peer within, but can see only shadows. Yet upon insinuating your fingers, they come in contact with what feels like some kind of container. It is lodged deep though, and struggle as you might you fail to pry it loose on your own. Your Omanyte slithers down your arm to assist though, wriggling its slippery tentacles between the cracks to gently persuade the possible treasure to leave (perhaps so it can claim the contents for itself). Eventually the prize pops out into your palm. Togepi trills with triumph and tries to grab it, engaging in a tug-of-war with Omanyte who refuses to let go. Despite having the advantage of more limbs on its side, its opponent puts up a fierce struggle, and you sigh, shaking your head at their childish refusal to share.

Tickling both Pokémon’s tummies, you take advantage of the moment of weakness to pluck the object from their grasp. It appears to be a wooden box, composed of smooth, even slats on each side, but fastened so seamlessly not even a nail could squeeze though. The material is coarse, red grain, and its pristine condition reminds you of the door you encountered earlier. Turning it on its axis, you find carved on the four equatorial surfaces symbols of what you speculate to be a sun, a leaf, a snowflake, and a flower. On the top and bottom are a circle with 12 scores uniformly spaced on the outer perimeter (could it be a clock, perhaps?), and another ring of eight smaller characters (each three lines grouped together, alternately broken in no apparently particular pattern), respectively. In the center of each of the six planes lies a small keyhole, identical to the ones you saw at the gate.

Though you can probably presume the answer, you attempt to open it, to no avail. Setting the puzzle on the ground, you ponder what the meaning behind such a strange item could be as your Pokémon take turns trying to break it ajar (in this case, their weakness is indeed a virtue). The timing and position of such an obvious clue’s placement proved too perfect, it could hardly be a coincidence.

At the moment you muse over this, you hear a soft presence pace behind you, and whirl around to find an adorable Autumn Deerling gazing up with large, brown doe eyes. It prances with excitement and nudges your body, then the box. Then it tiptoes to the tree and nods eagerly towards the base. Blinking, you draw near, and it backs up only to allow you to brush aside the overgrown grass. Lodged between the roots, you gasp to discover a thin mesh of glowing gray-blue beams tracing over the earth. Faint and ethereal, like a spider web. A spilled spool of silver thread, looping upon itself. Mute and bright colors criss-cross, catching diamond dewdrops that dazzle.

You look to the little fawn in confusion, and it indicates the box again, pushing it insistently with its nose to the net. The rays seem to hum with energy in response.

Missingno. Master : “Thank you so much!!! This way! My name is Eric by the way!” But before you get a chance to properly shake hands and whatnot, the boy races off in the direction he came from, with you and your floating friends following close behind.

“There he is!” It takes a few minutes until you finally reach the Shuckle, to an area of the Rainbow Road that doesn’t seem to have people around, and you see the Shuckle thrown on the floor next to a tree. As soon as you get near the Shuckle, the boy bends down next to it, sniffling and panting as his hand slowly scoops up the Shuckle’s head, “Shu…ckle…uckle?” It says weakly, “I’m here Shuckle and I brought help, see?” The Shuckle can barely keep his eyes open, but before you or your ghosts get a chance to ask what happened or proceed with helping out the boy you hear a swoosh behind you, and it seems like both Myrtle and Helena heard it too as they turn, and that’s when you hear a loud “Ala-kazam!” and “Garrrrr!” as you begin to turn. Your body feels great pressure from all sides, as if something is holding you in your place and stops you from moving. “Good job Alakazam and Gardevoir! Just hold them with Psychic for a little while longer!” a voice from behind says, as the boy drops the Shuckle’s head to the floor and gets up with a smile. Your ghosts remain motionless as a man with a black trench coat and long dark hair with dark eyes approaches them with a relatively large dark tinted glass case. “Huh. You could have chosen somebody with rarer Pokémon but…” he takes a close look at Helena first, and then Myrtle, “I guess this one will do, she will be able to get us some money if we sell her since she seems like she was trained properly, unlike that useless Shuckle.” He opens the case as the Alakazam moves Myrtle with Psychic into it, “Let’s go!” The man tells the boy, with the boys stopping right in front of you, “Please take care of my Shuckle for me!” He says with a wink, running to the Gardevoir afterwards. “Thanks for the Pokémon, kid! Alakazam, Gardevoir, Teleport!” And right in front of you, the man, boy, Alakazam, Gardevoir and Myrtle in a glass case disappear; as you feel the pressure holding you disappear as well, as well as Helena, with the Shuckle on the floor looking extremely weak…

Memory Lane:Trepie: Deciding to take a more defensive approach against this unknown shadow/smoke-type…thing, vines sprout from the ground as Athene uses Ingrain, rooting herself to the ground. Energy begins to flow from the ground into Athene, just as the thing moves an inch closer to Athene, with her completely unfazed by it. Athene’s eyes begin to glow slightly, and then a bright Flash is released, white light shining brightly from Athene’s direction. A few seconds pass before the light begins to fade and it seems like it had no effect on the field or the shadow as the light fades away. Athene’s curiosity seems to have peaked as the motionless shadow remains there. She extends her vines and touches it, trying to Tickle it. The attack seems to have no effect on the thing at first, until you hear it moan and then begin to see it begin to drip with dark colored drops. You try seeing where the drops are originating from, with little success, and that’s when you hear it whimper. Whatever it is, it seems to be…crying. You somehow feel incredible sadness and unhappiness coming from it, and Athene seems to feel it too as she slowly retreats her vines. After a few seconds you feel incredibly heartbroken just looking at it, unsure why, and that’s when the dark puddle from underneath the thing begins to move closer to Athene, stopping right in front of her, with something slowly emerging from the puddle. A Gengar shaped shadow stands in front of Athene, just as the shadow thing backs away a few feet from the Gengar and Athene. The Gengar doesn’t seem to show much emotion with his mouth closed and dark colored eyes, his shadow hands begins to glow with ghost energy as he then takes a swing at Athene, the Shadow Punch missing as Athene dodges the attack by stepping back as quickly as possible. The Gengar just looks at Athene, remaining emotionless with the thing just looking on from behind, no longer moaning or dripping the dark fluid…

Stardust Fieldskaisap112: The Rapidash’s horn begin to glow as it charges, with Kitty rushing her own attack as she begins to make another two copies of herself with Double Team. The copies are made right on time, with the Rapidash dashing through the imaginary Kitty with Megahorm, and just as the glow from the powerful attack subsides, the Rapidash is hit with a Water Pulse, and as the water drips from the Rapidash, you can see it pant quite laboriously now. The Rapidash furiously charges at Minori, slamming into him with his purple horn with Poison Jab, the seal rolling on the floor before hitting the couch on the side. Kitty gives the horse no time to recover as she slams her tail as stealthily as possibly with a Faint Attack, her tail covered in dark energy as she does, making the horse whine in pain. Its nostril flare, and uses the same energy as before when attacking Minori on Skitty as it slams into her with Take Down, sending the cat flying to the wall, hitting it and you hear a horrible cracking sound as she does. You try to get to Kitty, but it seems like she is still able to fight as she shakily gets up from the attack, with Rapidash having suffered recoil damage from it as well as he winces in pain. You then feel something touching your shoes, and look down to see the Turtwig, as he looks at Jenny and then to the side. The Turtwig gives you a look of desperation, as if he wants to go to Jenny and Growlithe itself. Minori unleashes one more Water Pulse at the Rapidash, the fiery maned horse neighing loudly as the attack hits it, sucking more health from it. The horse looks like it is about to double over, but manages to keep standing.The man boasts loudly as the last attack hits, “Okay…here we go, kid, time to end this match! Rapidash! Use Overheat on the place, as many times as you can!” With everything around you being made of wood, or what appears to be a wood or flammable material, looks like you better pull the big guns for this….

Cloud ForestMarbleZone: Deciding to help out the farmer’s Mareeps, you quickly make your way over to the quadruped silhouettes, with Heracross flying forward as quickly as he can. Buster lands in front of the bleating Mareep and you can see Buster land in front of them and stop the figures from pursuing the Mareep as the Mareep get closer to you and towards the house, crying loudly. As you continue getting closer you can see that they look like canines, with red eyes piercing the darkness of the night, and Buster wastes no time in dancing around, looking as intimidating as possible as he does the Swords Dance. One of the canines seems to back down a little, while the other attacks Buster with what appears to be a Tackle, hitting him and pushing him back from the force of the attack. You finally are able to see the Mightyena, just as Buster fills his fist with fighting energy, hitting the Mightyena that Tackled him with Rock Smash, making the dark canine yelp in pain, growling loudly at Buster as he then launches at the second Mightyena, hitting it as well with Rock Smash across the body, having a similar effect on it than it did with the other Mightyena. Neither of the beasts seem to want to back down, at least not yet, as the Mightyena that just got hit begins to Howl as loudly as it can, raising its attack. Both Mightyena circle Buster in opposite sides, and they look ready to pounce on him at once…

What will you do?

Nagasaki: (Happy belated birthday!) Everyone seems completely fired up, with the Glameow purring with excitement as the match that was started once before but was interrupted by a fire begins once again, this time with no trees or foliage in the field to trigger a fire again. Blazer spits out a purple good like substance at the Glameow, who seems to be more than ready as it dodges the attack by jumping and twisting its body out of the way of the Toxic. The Glameow seems to have a smile on its face as it lands back on the ground, jumping towards Blazer and Scratching him across the chest, making him wince in pain as the claws sratch his body. Blazer begins to take deep breaths, and tries his best to concentrate as he begins to Focus Energy, raising both his accuracy and attack, just as the Glameow jumps towards him again, trying to Scratch him again, Blazer’s nails begin to glow a dark color as he then summersaults up in the air, slashing the Glameow’s claws with Night Slash, sending the Glameow back with the force of the attack. The Glameow seems to have sustained most of the damage of the collision of the Scratch and Night Slash attack, shaking its head before Growling at Blazer, which seems to be effective as Blazer looks at the Glameow with slight uncertainty after the attack, his attack slightly lowered by it. Both Pokémon still look on with confidence, even after the attack gained by Blazer was neutralized after Growl, they both seem like they want to win, badly...

What will you do now?

Thrain: Cypress is the first one to make a move, as she sends another cloud of spores with Stun Spore. This time they seem to be crackling with electricity, and touch the bodies of the two spiders, making yellow currents paralyze them, at least for now as neither spider can move, giving Blaze the perfect opportunity to unleash his attack. He gets closer to the spiders and begins to spit out bright red bubbles towards the two spiders. The Fire Stream bubbles begin to pop on the way there, as the Galvantula and Ariados remain paralyzed by the attack, unable to dodge the bubbles as they begin to explode on them, taking moderately high damage from it. The Galvantula finally seems like it is able to move, as it begin to spark before sending Thunder Waves at Blaze, making him yelp as the paralyzing waves course through his body. Cypress then releases a wave of Poisonpowder, with the Galvantula turning slightly purpleish and looking slightly sick, panting slightly now as the attack hits, though the Ariados seems unaffected by the powder. Meanwhile you notice the Cubchoo unleash an Icy Wind at the Ariados, covering the Ariados in a layer of ice as the attack hits. Blaze can only growl as the paralysis seems to be invading his body, but he manages to get in control long enough to deliver the next blow, lunging at the closest spider, Galvantula, his jaw tightening as he takes a bite out of it with Fire Fangs. The Galvantula releases a blast of electricity at Blaze as the pain from the attack happens, making him let go as he is hit with the Thunderbolt. Blaze takes a few steps back and shakes his head as the electricity cackles around him, and the Galvantula seems to be quite injured by the attacks delivered this far, with the Ariados looking much better. Just then, the spiders on the side of the room seem to move a bit, but remain asleep to your relief.

biggggg5: “Good idea, Big! Pandora, use a String Shot to make a ball of string!” Pandora nods as she begins to use String Shot to create something to have another source of light, aside from the dull flames around the room. Meanwhile, the Nuzleaf nods at you, taking a deep breath as he then begins to spit out green colored pellets at the Machamp’s chest. The Machamps takes a step back with the grass type attack hitting it right on the chest, as he then begins to cover himself with his arms again. “There!” Krys says as she holds what appears to be a torch, or ball of string made out from the Caterpie’s silk, “Hotstuff, it’s ready!” Hotstuff looks at the ball with delight, spitting a light fireball at it, turning it on fire. With that out of the way, and the torches hanging on the wall, it seems like Hotstuff can finally take a break as you recall him for a long overdue rest. You then hear a cracking sound as Hercules’ Brick Break hits the Machamp on his arms, and you then see the Machamps top left hand fall to the ground with the Machamp jumping at Hercules as if nothing happened, kicking Hercules across the room with Low Kick, hitting the wall. Hercules slowly gets up, and it looks like the attack did quite a bit of damage on him, with the Machamp statue looking the same as before, although with a missing limb now. The Nuzleaf just looks at you, ready to continue helping. (You can command Nuzleaf as your own Pokémon for the remainder of the battle, with two commands per Pokémon per update. It knows all of it’s EM’s and level up attacks up to level 25, as well as Bullet Seed)

What will you do?

The Fountain GardenMon1010: Shaana gives the Psyduck a flirty smile, trying to Captivate it with her charm, with the Psysuck just looking angrily at her. It seems like the attack didn’t work, maybe because of how angry the duckling is or because it is the same gender. Either way, the Psyduck wastes no time launching itself at the Munna, swiping her across the face and body multiple times, each time wincing as the Psyduck’s paws scratch her skin with Fury Swipes. She squeals loudly as the last paw swipes her, unleashing a beam of psychic energy at the Psyduck, the Psybeam hitting the duck right in the beak, knocking it over to the ground. Munna, panting now due to fatigue and moderate health loss, tries to summon the power of the moon as she begins to use Moonlight. The attack heals very little to no health to the oval pink Pokémon since it is broad daylight, and with the Psyduck slowly getting up, there is little for the Munna to do as she gets hit with pain in her head as the Psyduck tries to use Confusion on her, though the attack doesn’t seem to be that effective. Munna doesn’t seem like she will be able to use that many more attacks as her panting is slowly becoming louder from energy use, as well as from the damage she has taken. The Psyduck seems to be in a similar situation as it stands slightly shaky from the damage it has sustained this far…

What will you do now?

Burnt Forest Wastelands
Tyoyo3131: “What do you mean?” She asks looking slightly confused, “Everyone gets a Pokémon to protect them as soon as they pass the Trials, silly!” She seems to state the “Trials” as a matter of fact, but before you get a chance to ask what the trials are, you make it to the sign that you saw not long ago. “Okay, this way!” Jamie says, rushing to the side that pointed to the remains of the tribe.

The infinite amount of sand particles from the sandstorm hit your goggles and face quite hard as you follow Jamie across it, mouth closed with you trying to cover it as well. Jamie seems to have less trouble walking through this than you as if she’s done this her whole life, though she still struggles moving forward when strong waves of dust sweep by. It isn’t long until the sandstorm dies down as you keep walking forward, and you see rock structures littered in front of you. “There! There it is!” Jamie points you in the direction of the structures, which look like old stone houses that have been blown away by time except for what appears to be the outlines of the houses made of stones that lay as the foundation, with rocks littered all around. “Pixie, come on out!” The fiery fox yaps happily as she is freed from the Pokéball, “Get to work Pixie, we have a bug to find!” “Vul!” she responds before sniffing around, and that’s when you feel something, not sure what, watching you. You take a look around and see nothing but the rocks littered across this place and Jamie, and shrug the feeling, that’s when you hear Pixie growling, and then turn to see her growling at a rock, almost cone shaped, with part of it underneath the ground. It seems like Pixie thinks that something is inside that rock, though there are other rocks like it in the area around you. It might not be time efficient to check them one by one, unless you have a plan to check them all, but Pixie seems to think something is inside this particular rock...

What will you do?

Allishinca The sand mouse like Pokémon looks at the Pokéball, and then you, slightly confused at what you want from it. It takes a few seconds, but the mouse seems to have no intention in moving, yawning again before it begins to curl up into a ball again, ready to keep on resting. The disappointment in the Sandshrew’s attitude towards joining you seems to be short lived though, as the earth beneath you begins to quake. The Sandshrew quickly unrolls itself, looking around nervously, before a small dust explosion happens in front of everyone, with a huge rock snakelike Pokémon crying out “Oooooonix!”, puffing as it looks at the Sandshrew and you. Both Pokémon lock looks and the Onix whips its tail at the Sandshrew, tail glowing with a silver coat, hitting the floor with Iron Tail as the ground Pokémon moves away with a Rapid Spin. The force of the attack sends dust all over the place, including towards you and Little Gar. The Sandshrew starts to spit out small star shaped projectiles at the Onix by using Swift, exploding on its rock hard body as they make contact which makes the Onix growl in pain, but that doesn’t stop the Onix from homing its tail at the Sandshrew while it is attacking it, Wrapping its tail around the Sandshrew making it squeak in pain. Looks like the little shrew needs some help unless you want to make a run for it while the Onix is distracted…

The Fountain Garden
Mon1010: Shaana gives the Psyduck a flirty smile, trying to Captivate it with her charm, with the Psysuck just looking angrily at her. It seems like the attack didn’t work, maybe because of how angry the duckling is or because it is the same gender. Either way, the Psyduck wastes no time launching itself at the Munna, swiping her across the face and body multiple times, each time wincing as the Psyduck’s paws scratch her skin with Fury Swipes. She squeals loudly as the last paw swipes her, unleashing a beam of psychic energy at the Psyduck, the Psybeam hitting the duck right in the beak, knocking it over to the ground. Munna, panting now due to fatigue and moderate health loss, tries to summon the power of the moon as she begins to use Moonlight. The attack heals very little to no health to the oval pink Pokémon since it is broad daylight, and with the Psyduck slowly getting up, there is little for the Munna to do as she gets hit with pain in her head as the Psyduck tries to use Confusion on her, though the attack doesn’t seem to be that effective. Munna doesn’t seem like she will be able to use that many more attacks as her panting is slowly becoming louder from energy use, as well as from the damage she has taken. The Psyduck seems to be in a similar situation as it stands slightly shaky from the damage it has sustained this far…

What will you do now?

Shaana's Captivate didn't work, meaning this Psyduck was indeed a lady! Shaana then proceeded to use Psybeam. Doing that only her only seemed to make her angrier. She went at Shaana with a Fury Swipes. After getting hit by the attack, she tried to heal herself with Moonlight, but it didn't have much of an effect. Both combatants were obviously tired from this battle. Scott didn't think Shaana would be able to last long before fainting from exhaustion.

First, Scott returned Shaana to her Pokeball. "Good job girl. Take a rest for a bit." Next, he brought out an empty Pokeball (2/10), and threw it in the Psyduck's direction. Figuring it was worth a shot, now that it's been tired out some from this battle. This could either result in her being captured, thus putting an end to this battle, or failing miserably and making her angrier. He crossed his fingers, and hoped for the former...

RainbowRoad Missingno. Master : “Thank you so much!!! This way! My name is Eric by the way!” But before you get a chance to properly shake hands and whatnot, the boy races off in the direction he came from, with you and your floating friends following close behind.

“There he is!” It takes a few minutes until you finally reach the Shuckle, to an area of the Rainbow Road that doesn’t seem to have people around, and you see the Shuckle thrown on the floor next to a tree. As soon as you get near the Shuckle, the boy bends down next to it, sniffling and panting as his hand slowly scoops up the Shuckle’s head, “Shu…ckle…uckle?” It says weakly, “I’m here Shuckle and I brought help, see?” The Shuckle can barely keep his eyes open, but before you or your ghosts get a chance to ask what happened or proceed with helping out the boy you hear a swoosh behind you, and it seems like both Myrtle and Helena heard it too as they turn, and that’s when you hear a loud “Ala-kazam!” and “Garrrrr!” as you begin to turn. Your body feels great pressure from all sides, as if something is holding you in your place and stops you from moving. “Good job Alakazam and Gardevoir! Just hold them with Psychic for a little while longer!” a voice from behind says, as the boy drops the Shuckle’s head to the floor and gets up with a smile. Your ghosts remain motionless as a man with a black trench coat and long dark hair with dark eyes approaches them with a relatively large dark tinted glass case. “Huh. You could have chosen somebody with rarer Pokémon but…” he takes a close look at Helena first, and then Myrtle, “I guess this one will do, she will be able to get us some money if we sell her since she seems like she was trained properly, unlike that useless Shuckle.” He opens the case as the Alakazam moves Myrtle with Psychic into it, “Let’s go!” The man tells the boy, with the boys stopping right in front of you, “Please take care of my Shuckle for me!” He says with a wink, running to the Gardevoir afterwards. “Thanks for the Pokémon, kid! Alakazam, Gardevoir, Teleport!” And right in front of you, the man, boy, Alakazam, Gardevoir and Myrtle in a glass case disappear; as you feel the pressure holding you disappear as well, as well as Helena, with the Shuckle on the floor looking extremely weak…

How will you respond?

As the boy, named Eric, eagerly thanked Keith and introduced himself, he dashed off in the direction from where he came. Keith followed close behind, as did his pair of Shuppet. After a few minutes, they came to a somewhat more secluded area of the Rainbow Road, and there sat a very weak-looking Shuckle on the ground next to a tree. Helena looked concerned for the Bug/Rock-type, while Myrtle merely seemed indifferent. Keith opened his mouth to ask what had happened, a swooshing sound came from behind. Myrtle and Helena turned simultaneously, and Keith did so as well as he heard the cries of two Pokemon. Or at least, he tried to turn. A great pressure was closing in on all sides, stopping him from moving. "What is this?! Myrtle, use your Water Gun attack!" Keith tried to say, only to find he couldn't move his mouth. Then came a man wearing a black trench coat. His eyes and long hair were both very dark, and he had a dark tinted glass case with him. After a moment's deliberation, he had his Alakazam use Psychic to move Myrtle into the case. Keith fought valiantly against the Psychic hold, tried to reach for Myrtle's Poke Ball, but it was useless. Then, with the two Psychic-types simultaneously using Teleport, the two men fled the scene, taking Myrtle with them, leaving behind only Keith, Helena, the rest of his Poke Balls (thank Arceus), and the Shuckle. At long last, the Psychic attack ceased, and Keith and Helena could move again.

"What. The. Hell." Keith panted, still trying to process just what happened here. He turned to Helena, and nearly jumped, for the normally sweet and kind Shuppet was clearly not taking this turn of events very well.

"Those bas-tards!" Helena exclaimed in a vicious tone. "If there is one thing I hate, it is Po-ke-mon thieves like cow-ard-ly Team Rock-et scum-bags! How dare they steal my big sis-ter like that! Keith, we must find them, we must get Myr-tle back!"

"I agree completely," Keith nodded. It was then that he noticed the feeble Shuckle at his feet. "But first, we gotta get this guy to a Pokemon Center," he added. "There's one back at the Sky Gate, we'll go there.

"Oh... Oh, yes, that is true," Helena nodded in a decidedly gentler tone. "But... But Myr-tle-"

"We don't know who or what we're up against," Keith interrupted. "Once we're at the Pokemon Center and the nurse is looking after Shuckle, we can ask around. Someone's gotta know something about something." He knelt down next to the Shuckle. "OK, Shuckle, we're gonna get you to the Pokemon Center, get you some help, OK?" he said gently. He prepared to gently scoop the Shuckle up into his arms before setting off for the Pokemon Center, hoping that the Shuckle was smart enough to know that he was trying to help.

__________________

My Shiny Pokémon (not up for trade, I don't do requests for Shiny banners or recolored Pokken artwork). FB team banners like the one above, however, those I do requests for.

Cloud ForestMarbleZone: Deciding to help out the farmer’s Mareeps, you quickly make your way over to the quadruped silhouettes, with Heracross flying forward as quickly as he can. Buster lands in front of the bleating Mareep and you can see Buster land in front of them and stop the figures from pursuing the Mareep as the Mareep get closer to you and towards the house, crying loudly. As you continue getting closer you can see that they look like canines, with red eyes piercing the darkness of the night, and Buster wastes no time in dancing around, looking as intimidating as possible as he does the Swords Dance. One of the canines seems to back down a little, while the other attacks Buster with what appears to be a Tackle, hitting him and pushing him back from the force of the attack. You finally are able to see the Mightyena, just as Buster fills his fist with fighting energy, hitting the Mightyena that Tackled him with Rock Smash, making the dark canine yelp in pain, growling loudly at Buster as he then launches at the second Mightyena, hitting it as well with Rock Smash across the body, having a similar effect on it than it did with the other Mightyena. Neither of the beasts seem to want to back down, at least not yet, as the Mightyena that just got hit begins to Howl as loudly as it can, raising its attack. Both Mightyena circle Buster in opposite sides, and they look ready to pounce on him at once…

What will you do?

The first round of instructions had been entirely successful, which was more than Levin could say for the start of just about any other battle in his career. Even in the midst of uncertainty, not knowing who they were up against, Buster had held its own admirably, and now had a distinct power and health advantage over the enemy... though certainly not in the numbers game.

The opponents turned out to be two fully grown Mightyena; Levin had hoped it'd be simple Poochyena before, but that was out the window. Still, at least they weren't Houndoom, which meant Buster had the complete type advantage.

The Heracross was grinning with excitement; as always, being sent into battle made him enter a state of ecstasy that wouldn't end until either him or his opponents passed out. And while that intensity usually worked in their favour, Levin knew it also made Buster unreliable. Pitted against two Mightyena, who were already circling him in typical pack-mind predatory strategy, and considering he was practically a newborn at this time, Levin reasoned the best thing to do was send in support to tilt the odds in his favour decisively. Reaching for a Pokeball in his belt, he picked Gaius, his Gible.

- Off you go, Gaius!

He hurled the Pokeball... and Buster swiftly turned around, hitting the Ball with his horn and sending back to Levin's hand.

- Buster?! What the hell?

The Heracross returned his attention to the Mightyena, a fiery glow in his eyes. He wasn't gonna let anybody else take part in the fun... this battle was his alone. Levin sighed... This was exactly what made the beetle unreliable! He was putting his own well-being on the line against two fully grown opponents for fun.

He clenched his fist. What could have been an easy thing to deal with had just become unnecessarily hard. Damn it!

- Okay Buster, have it your way. But be careful, you're surrounded!! Get Revenge on the Mightyena that Tackled you, then Bide their strikes and make them regret it!

Levin then hurrieldy turned to Karrablast.

- If you were willing to lose your life protecting your own empty Pokeball, then I need you to double your efforts to keep the Mareep under control now! This family's livelihood depends on it, don't let it panic and run away! Buster and I will deal with the attackers.

Hoping he sounded a lot more reassuring than he felt, he gave Karrablast a thumbs-up and refocused on the battle at hand, while keeping the original purpose of this travel in the back of his mind - Chris's assailants were still on the loose, and the distance between them increased with every minute lost by sidetracking...

Cloud ForestNagasaki: (Happy belated birthday!) Everyone seems completely fired up, with the Glameow purring with excitement as the match that was started once before but was interrupted by a fire begins once again, this time with no trees or foliage in the field to trigger a fire again. Blazer spits out a purple good like substance at the Glameow, who seems to be more than ready as it dodges the attack by jumping and twisting its body out of the way of the Toxic. The Glameow seems to have a smile on its face as it lands back on the ground, jumping towards Blazer and Scratching him across the chest, making him wince in pain as the claws sratch his body. Blazer begins to take deep breaths, and tries his best to concentrate as he begins to Focus Energy, raising both his accuracy and attack, just as the Glameow jumps towards him again, trying to Scratch him again, Blazer’s nails begin to glow a dark color as he then summersaults up in the air, slashing the Glameow’s claws with Night Slash, sending the Glameow back with the force of the attack. The Glameow seems to have sustained most of the damage of the collision of the Scratch and Night Slash attack, shaking its head before Growling at Blazer, which seems to be effective as Blazer looks at the Glameow with slight uncertainty after the attack, his attack slightly lowered by it. Both Pokémon still look on with confidence, even after the attack gained by Blazer was neutralized after Growl, they both seem like they want to win, badly...

What will you do now?

OOC: Thanks for that.

"Nice somersault! If that crash is a swordfight, it would be awesome!" Said Nagasaki. Although amazed on the battle, he said something onto Peter. "Hey peter, before I start ordering, I think I owe you an explanation, and you owe me an interrogation on what happened yesterday. The information I got might help you on tracking the firestarters." Without further ado, it's first things first: he must focus on the battle. Nagasaki Started thinking fast, as quick as lightning. He analyzed the situation, their enemy's strategy, reflexes, and possible attack sets. He tries to find a weak spot, and after a quick analyzation, the trainer began ordering his trusty companion. "Blazer, prepare a Flamethrower and fire it on the enemy! Follow with up with another shot of Toxic! Then counter the enemy's attack with a Night Slash!" With that mindset, the blazing trainer released his fury, transferred the feeling to his Pokemon, making them determined to get victory on this devastating battle...

Hope you guys have a good one, so here are some New Year updates for you to start 2013! (Was going to post them at 11:59 PM but I can't wait anymore =P)

Cloud Forestbiggggg5: “Good idea, Big! Pandora, use a String Shot to make a ball of string!” Pandora nods as she begins to use String Shot to create something to have another source of light, aside from the dull flames around the room. Meanwhile, the Nuzleaf nods at you, taking a deep breath as he then begins to spit out green colored pellets at the Machamp’s chest. The Machamps takes a step back with the grass type attack hitting it right on the chest, as he then begins to cover himself with his arms again. “There!” Krys says as she holds what appears to be a torch, or ball of string made out from the Caterpie’s silk, “Hotstuff, it’s ready!” Hotstuff looks at the ball with delight, spitting a light fireball at it, turning it on fire. With that out of the way, and the torches hanging on the wall, it seems like Hotstuff can finally take a break as you recall him for a long overdue rest. You then hear a cracking sound as Hercules’ Brick Break hits the Machamp on his arms, and you then see the Machamps top left hand fall to the ground with the Machamp jumping at Hercules as if nothing happened, kicking Hercules across the room with Low Kick, hitting the wall. Hercules slowly gets up, and it looks like the attack did quite a bit of damage on him, with the Machamp statue looking the same as before, although with a missing limb now. The Nuzleaf just looks at you, ready to continue helping. (You can command Nuzleaf as your own Pokémon for the remainder of the battle, with two commands per Pokémon per update. It knows all of it’s EM’s and level up attacks up to level 25, as well as Bullet Seed)

What will you do?

"Alright keep it up guys!" Big encourages the two pokemon. "Nuzleaf try a razor leaf then another bullet seed. Hercules come back I'm gonna try someone else" He calls to the pokemon and recalls the fighting type and grabs a different Pokeball. "Go Geddy!" Out of the ball pops a small little electric eel pokemon. "I was a in the middle of a nap." He says to his trainer. (In the pokemon language but Big has been around his friends enough to understand and them.) "I know but it's time for you to battle. Give it two of the quickest sparks you can." "Alright then, lets rock and roll" the Tynamo says. Let's see if razor leaf does any more damage then bullet seed Big thinks to himself. You know this fight is very similar to a video game boss battle, the tactics are very similar. I wonder if there are other guardians like this one. Lets see how it handles my quick little Tynamo

Allishinca The sand mouse like Pokémon looks at the Pokéball, and then you, slightly confused at what you want from it. It takes a few seconds, but the mouse seems to have no intention in moving, yawning again before it begins to curl up into a ball again, ready to keep on resting. The disappointment in the Sandshrew’s attitude towards joining you seems to be short lived though, as the earth beneath you begins to quake. The Sandshrew quickly unrolls itself, looking around nervously, before a small dust explosion happens in front of everyone, with a huge rock snakelike Pokémon crying out “Oooooonix!”, puffing as it looks at the Sandshrew and you. Both Pokémon lock looks and the Onix whips its tail at the Sandshrew, tail glowing with a silver coat, hitting the floor with Iron Tail as the ground Pokémon moves away with a Rapid Spin. The force of the attack sends dust all over the place, including towards you and Little Gar. The Sandshrew starts to spit out small star shaped projectiles at the Onix by using Swift, exploding on its rock hard body as they make contact which makes the Onix growl in pain, but that doesn’t stop the Onix from homing its tail at the Sandshrew while it is attacking it, Wrapping its tail around the Sandshrew making it squeak in pain. Looks like the little shrew needs some help unless you want to make a run for it while the Onix is distracted…

What will you do?

Alli held out a Pokeball to the sleepy little mouse Pokemon. The sleepy Sandshrew leaned in slightly and sniffed the Pokeball. He looked at it, then at Alli, before tilting his head to the side in a confused manner. Everyone remained perfectly still for a few moments: Alli with her arm outstretched, Little Gar up in the trees with the intent of tackling, and the befuddled Sandshrew. When nothing happened, the little mouse yawned again before popping itself back into ball form.

"Aww, I don't think he understood."

"Hmph," mumbled Gar, as though he would have been able to figure it out. The ground began to quake violently, almost throwing Little Gar off of his branch as he clung to the tree trunk. Alli stumbled backwards and fell, unable to react out of shock. The Sandshrew unrolled itself and surveyed the surroundings with a frightful look in its eye. A sudden explosion of dust enveloped the trio, sending Alli into a frightful coughing fit as a large rock snake emerged from the earth. It roared out ominously when it noticed Little Alli and the Sandshrew. The two wild Pokemon quickly lock eyes as the Onix puffed itself up menacingly. Alli quickly reached into her pocket and pulled forth her Pokedex:

Onix. The Rock Snake Pokémon. Rock/Ground type.

"Wow, that Pokemon is huge-" Alli barely had time to finish her statement when the Onix lifted up its large tail, ready to strike. Alli scrambled to get out of the way as the Onix's Iron Tail came crashing down. Alli managed to escape and hid behind a burnt tree, as the Sandshrew dodged the attack with a Rapid Spin. Dust again sprang up from the ground, causing Alli to cough more having inhaled too much of it while running away. Little Gar remained up in the tree and stood unusually still, seemingly unsure of how to react to the sudden developments below.

The Sandshrew retaliated by flinging star shaped missiles at the large rock snake. The Swift attack connected, causing the Onix to growl in pain. Alli finally stopped coughing, and watched the fight with wide eyes. The Onix swung its tail around, Wrapping the poor Sandshrew up tightly. The little mouse cried out in pain, causing Little Gar to decide that while, he did not like the fella, he did not want to see him squeezed to death, either. Hopping down from the tree, Gar would've dived straight into the fight had Alli not caught him by the ponytail.

"Oh no you don't! What did I just say about type disadvantages?" Little Gar hardly cared, and struggled while in his trainer's grasp. "Will you calm down? We'll help the Sandshrew, but you can't be the one to jump in!" Pulling another Pokeball off of her belt, she tossed it out, releasing a Sableye. Little Gar stopped his fidgeting at this point, curious as to where this situation was going. "Pluto! I need you to get in there and hit that Onix with Fake Out! While it's stunned, I'll have Little Gar pull that Sandshrew free." Pluto doubted the ability of his younger teammate, and gave his trainer an inquisitive glance. Little Gar stuck his tongue out at the darkness Pokemon. "C'mon, you two! That Sandshrew needs us! Pluto, after you've used Fake Out, I then need you to Shadow Sneak that Onix, and when you're close enough, hit him with Signal Beam at point blank range!" Pluto nodded and ran into action. Alli released Little Gar, who seemingly wanted to prove himself and held his position until ready.

Memory Lane:Trepie: Deciding to take a more defensive approach against this unknown shadow/smoke-type…thing, vines sprout from the ground as Athene uses Ingrain, rooting herself to the ground. Energy begins to flow from the ground into Athene, just as the thing moves an inch closer to Athene, with her completely unfazed by it. Athene’s eyes begin to glow slightly, and then a bright Flash is released, white light shining brightly from Athene’s direction. A few seconds pass before the light begins to fade and it seems like it had no effect on the field or the shadow as the light fades away. Athene’s curiosity seems to have peaked as the motionless shadow remains there. She extends her vines and touches it, trying to Tickle it. The attack seems to have no effect on the thing at first, until you hear it moan and then begin to see it begin to drip with dark colored drops. You try seeing where the drops are originating from, with little success, and that’s when you hear it whimper. Whatever it is, it seems to be…crying. You somehow feel incredible sadness and unhappiness coming from it, and Athene seems to feel it too as she slowly retreats her vines. After a few seconds you feel incredibly heartbroken just looking at it, unsure why, and that’s when the dark puddle from underneath the thing begins to move closer to Athene, stopping right in front of her, with something slowly emerging from the puddle. A Gengar shaped shadow stands in front of Athene, just as the shadow thing backs away a few feet from the Gengar and Athene. The Gengar doesn’t seem to show much emotion with his mouth closed and dark colored eyes, his shadow hands begins to glow with ghost energy as he then takes a swing at Athene, the Shadow Punch missing as Athene dodges the attack by stepping back as quickly as possible. The Gengar just looks at Athene, remaining emotionless with the thing just looking on from behind, no longer moaning or dripping the dark fluid…

What will you do?

When the smoke moaned again, Auric and Athene both noticed the strange dark drops hitting the ground from it's center mass somewhere. Followed quickly by a whimper, what ever this entity is, it was crying. Slowly the shadow of a Gengar took shape in front of them. It's cold dark eyes leering at Athene before swiping at her. While not being the most graceful pokemon on Auric's team her caution proved enough to avoid the attack. Athene and Auric were both reaching the same conclusion. This wasn't an attack, at least not on purpose. Athene turned to look back at Auric. "Cursed maybe?" He said shaking his head. Truth be told he hadn't seen anything quite like this before. Neither had Athene and it was taking all of her will power to resist the urge to pick it up and shake it until she knew exactly what it was. Auric didn't want to antagonize the situation any further than they already had and when Athene couldn't understand something she wasn't above screaming and slapping it. "Let me try talking to it." Auric said taking a deep breath and stepping forward.

"Please, we didn't mean to upset you. Me and my friend aren't used to situations like this so we were just being cautious. We don't mean you any harm." Auric said stepping a little closer to the edge of the puddle that the Gengar shadow had come from. "I'm not even sure you can understand me but if you can, I promise you can trust us."

Auric stopped for a moment putting a hand behind his back, spreading his palm and then clenching his fist. It was a signal to Athene and one she knew well. It was their panic switch. If things go hinky Athene would use her vines to pull Auric out of harms way. Slowly she began to snake a vine along the ground towards Auric just in case she had to save him from some unseen attack. Auric had developed a lot cues with his entire team. At first ot seemed a little pathetic and weird, until they started working. When you're running through some unknown cavern or chasing down a thief, it gives a definite advantage if you don't have to shout your next action every time a new challenge arises. Everyone knows their roles and they know when to follow and when to lead. It made them all a stronger team. His pokemon even began to come up with cues between themselves for when Auric got himself into trouble.

Auric knelt down to examine the puddle, careful not to touch it. "Are you hurt or lost? No offense intended but you seem very sad about something. Something to do with a Gengar?What ever it is we can help. You need to show us how though. We can't understand you right now. Maybe you can draw it with the puddle?" He said looking up timidly at the Gengar shadow and the smokey figure.

He wasn't sure any of that had got through or not. What ever it was, it didn't seem that aggressive. But Auric had no idea how to help it without it being somehow able to communicate. He slowly stood back up when he felt Athene's vine wrap tightly around his belt. His safety harness was in place but he knew it would still hurt like hell if Athene whipped him backwards full force. All he could do now was wait. Wait to see if the entity understood him, or whether this was going to become a full on brawl against a supernatural being.

Shadowshocker – Taryn listens respectfully as you tell your own tale of woe, and taps her cheek in sympathetic concern.

“That is a bit of a pickle…” She follows your line of sight towards the Murkrow and nods.

“I’ll see what I can do. I could certainly try to talk with Jacob, though from the looks of things I’m not sure if he remembers me.” She glances up again at the dark spectator and shudders slightly. “…However, birds aren’t really my area of expertise. The only natural avian I’ve actually associated closely with is my Altaria.” Leaning closer, she adds in awkward confidence: “To be honest, their feathers kinda frighten me. I’m somewhat allergic to them.”

Shaking her head for suddenly sharing something so shameful considering her position, not to mention once more off-topic, she quickly tries to steer the conversation back. “In fact, the Pidgey at the Hero’s Festival belonged to my colleague. If you want, he can probably assist you. He’s hosting the show now, but it sounds like it’s almost over. You should go see the finale, it’s really quite a special sight. I’ll speak to Mike afterwards and we’ll wait for you backstage if you require a hand in handling the situation, how’s that?”

She smiles and reaches out to console your shoulder. With a wink, she whispers: “Don’t worry about your Drifloon, I’m sure he’ll be fine. I can sense these Murkrow don’t mean any harm at least. We’ll get him back safely.

As for Jacob, kids can be surprisingly attuned to the world of adults. He may be more aware of things than we know. Hiding secrets tends to only hurt them more. They can certainly sense when something’s wrong. Years of counseling children has taught me that. My only mistake – that I deeply regret to this day – was not being able to be there for him when he needed it, in order to guide him through the healing process… I know the flock feels it’s probably protecting its friend, but as long as it keeps him on ‘life support’, so to speak, he’ll never be able to move on.”

The crow cranes closer upon catching word of its comrades, but the woman switches subject immediately. She points to the plushie in your palms before pressing it closed, the warm contact of her skin suffusing. “In your case, maybe instead of trying to trick him into thinking the doll is a replacement, give it to him straight as a ‘real’ gift and see how he responds? You might not even have to explain everything in full, but if you do decide to tell him the truth, be gentle about it…”

With that advice, she pats your back and pushes gently towards the seats (your shadow follows silently), where Jacob is watching the display with wide eyes. He grins as you approach and shifts to allow space for you to sit.

You startle, realizing you forgot to completely conceal the prize you won this time, after having exposed it to Taryn to illustrate both living and dead examples of outcomes. Fortunately, Jacob grows distracted by a burst of artificial light and sparkles from the stage as the aerial brigade makes a finishing dive towards the trainer, who bows to applause with all of his talented acrobats balanced on his arms. He then sends each one off again to explore the fair until the next performance, which he warns will be the last and most spectacular based on the schedule so better tell your friends if they missed out, before disappearing behind the curtain. You glance up to note the sun has passed the high point and started to sink towards the horizon. Time flies when having fun, so they say…

Jacob continues to clap enthusiastically, causing Doldrum to clearly dizzify from all the shaking. Though he too seems exhilarated by the event as he raises a heart to his tape and whistles in appreciation, waving as the stars soar by. Jacob turns and beams at you, still stirring with excitement.

“Wow! Was-n’t that cool? What’s next?”

As the families on either side start to stand up and squeeze past, Jacob tucks in his knees and stares as a pair of parents happily pick their child up, hoisting her high above the crowd so she doesn’t get squashed. Despite a cheerful expression, your companion sags slightly.

What will you do now?

While Jacob was momentarily distracted and Doldrum was continuing his role as the youngster's playmate, the rest of the team gazed up at their Trainer. Any excitement they might otherwise have had was clearly drowned out by the concern they had for their comrade; Arugulus, young as he was, was already exhibiting signs of weariness - indication that his usual calm demeanour was being strained. Durin was as inscrutable as ever though Shadow noted that he was starting to wobble sideways on occasion. Novawing merely placed his claws on his knees in an ever-ready pose and met eyes with his Trainer, holding a vigilant yet somewhat hopeful tone in his eye, perhaps wishing for a swift resolution. A stray breeze scratching at the hair behind the scientist's neck reminded him of the miserly avian glaring at them from above.

Shadow glanced at the replacement for Doldrum in his hand, which merely met his eyes with the soulless, straightforward view that had been sewn into it, as the setting sun cast its glints through the sides of Shadow's spectacles. Of course - the evening setting in was no doubt an indication that the excursion was nearing its end. Technically, the team had fulfilled their end of the deal, and Shadow trusted Taryn's judgement that the Murkrow meant them no lasting malice. But what would become of Jacob if the group left him as things were? Taryn's advice lingered in his head - would the Murkrow sentinels merely bring Jacob back, only to exact another elaborate plan when the next birthday rolled round? No... the orphan deserved, required more than contrived celebrations, that much was obvious. A single creed echoed in the recesses of Shadow's memory, of the great organisation he had sworn his loyalty to years ago. "Make a birthday wish, and as a Kids Next Door guarantee, we'll make it happen." Awkward as things had been, Shadow knew that Doldrum, at least, would be troubled if the team didn't personally see things through - but issues regarding the departed was something that the scientist had even less experience with. Shadow was comforted in the knowledge that Taryn was willing to assist him, having held her own emotional investment in the child, and that if he needed to or Jacob willed so the group could always approach her - but only guidance from Jacob could help them now. It was not until the entire stands had been cleared of spectators that Shadow began his next move, out of the sincerity he had come to feel for the disadvantaged ghost child.

"Jacob? It's like I promised; I got you your present." As he knelt down, Shadow presented the Drifloon doll to Jacob. "It's for you, so you have something to remember us by... and to remember Doldrum by. He's a close personal friend and teammate of mine." At the mention of his name the Drifloon floated closer to Jacob, placing a comforting appendage on the boy's scarfed head but also coming down to hover near his Trainer, indicative of his actual allegiance. "...Jacob, I've heard about you from a friend of mine, and yours. I know about your circumstances, and that... well, you're not really like us. I know how the rest of your friends wanted you to have the best birthday ever, and they roped in Doldrum and the rest of us to help. But I know there's something else that you want, deep down, above all else.

"You don't have to tell me everything if you don't want to. I can't imagine what it must feel like to have experienced what you went through. But if you're willing, I think my friends and I can help you move on. You deserve nothing less than that."

The Forbidden Garden: A large, unbreakable, inpenetrable door blocks off this area. Even a bunch of Machamp couldn't get this open. There are seven keyholes located on the door, unfortunately the keys that fit them seem to be missing. Nobody knows what lies behind the door, those up for a challenge may like to find out.

Bill had heard of this place before, though he never actually thought that he'd encounter it himself. The so-called Forbidden Garden. Many many many archaeologists had tried for years to open the doors and be one of the few that had actually seen what was on the other side, but unfortunately all had failed. That was about to change if Bill had anything to say about it. Though he had a second reason for venturing out into the Cloud Garden in general. He needed to train his Golett, Megas. Helping him train was one of Bill's first acquired Pokemon, Gold, a Totodile. Megas was just happily running around the area, something he expected Gold to do as well. Much to the trainer's surprise, the Totodile didn't seem to have his usual jovial expression, which worried him too.

"Gold," Bill said with some worry in his tone. The Totodile looked up at the trainer, putting on a smile. "You feelin' okay, buddy?"

"Toto!" the Totodile nodded its head in an energetic manner, yet Bill couldn't help but feel there was something off with him. The trainer shrugged it off, if Gold wanted to talk about it, he kinda could with him.

As the group approached the area where the Forbidden Garden's door was supposed to lay, the Megas started to sprint faster, prompting both the trainer and the Water-crocodile to follow suit. "Megas, wait up!" they both called out in their respective languages.

Hey guys, I'll be your new updator now, taking over from tau. I know that these may be a little short, but I am still trying to get back in the hang of updating, so they will more than likely improve in the future.

RainbowWaterfalls:

hen da man
Blaze materializes on the top of the cliff, shocked that you had managed to get to the top already. Looking back to you, Lana rubs her forehead, still in a little bit of shock that she might have actually seen a Dratini! "Um, yeah," she says, snapping out of the semi stupor she was in, "Yeah, it would probably be an amazing shot, especially if I can get it to pose with Charmander. That would definitely be money shot! Now which direction would they have gone?"

As the pair of you ponder where the pokemon may have gone, there being no clear signs of a path, Blaze's nose suddenly starts to twitch, he can smell something! He pokes your arm with his nose before the Houndour lowers his head to the ground and starts to sniff along an invisible trail. Realising that he has possibly caught the scent of Ember and the 'Dratini' Lana grabs a hold of your arm and starts running, dragging you with her, Jeremy following. The three of you follow Blaze through lush undergrowth, nearly getting yourself whipped in the face more than a couple of times. You burst into a small clearing situated in front of a cave mouth, your Houndour growling at what ever is inside the cave. In addition to that, there was a strange noise coming from inside the cave, almost like a high pitched wail of sorts. It definitely didn't sound like it would come from a Charmander, but something was wailing in there.

What will you do?

The Forbidden Garden

Gemini Spark

You go down the middle path, hoping to possibly find Daphne along the way. Bathed in the eerie light coming from the pillars, you almost feel as if someone were watching you. Looking over you shoulder, trying to see if maybe someone was, you suddenly notice that the symbols behind you have started to dim slightly. This was just getting better and better, wasn't it? You start to rush along the path, trying to make sure that you keep ahead of the dimming symbols. Breaking into a brisk walk, you look up ahead and see the light starting to spread out, maybe there was something up there? Your suspicions turn out to be right, the path leading to a large area surrounded bordered by the glowing pillars.

In the centre of the area are three podiums, each reaching up to your waist. In the middle of the podiums is a small basket, containing small stone cut figures of Clefable, Blissey, Plusle, Alakazam, Hariyama, Mienshao, Metagross, Garbador, and Electrode. Also in the basket is a note. You reach down and pick the note up, which says:

Each of these podiums represents something that each of these pokemon may either have or belong to. Each podium will have an equal amount of pokemon that are relevant to it. If you should succeed in this task then you will move on. However if you fail... prepare to suffer the consequences.

It looks like you have a puzzle on your hands that you need to solve, especially if it means that you may find Daphne.What will you do?

The Fountain Garden

OkikuMew

You look down at the remains of the device that the Rocket had accidentally destroyed. What could he have been up to with it? By all regards it looked like nothing more than some sort of shock collar, but it had to be more than that, didn't it? You weigh the pieces in your hand, trying to see if maybe their weight would give something away. But, unfortunately, there was nothing that you could tell just by its weight. It just doesn't seem to add up, what was that man going to do to Staryu? Maybe Doctor Kaku would have an idea about what this thing is, sure he may be a specialist on water pokemon but he was still a scientist wasn't he?

Meanwhile, the Staryu was flexing its arms, the potion starting to kick in. It was happy to be out of that cage, especially considering that man was going to do something to him that was definitely not going to be fun for it. It looks over at you, well at least you think it looks over at you, Staryus don't exactly have eyes. It walks over to you, looking rather grateful, or at least you think it does, and stands in front of you, waving its arms, to try and signify something. You continue to look at the starfish pokemon, not entirely sure of what it wants. Realising that you don't get the message, Staryu points at Rawk and then at one of the balls hanging from your backpack, which makes the message click in your head.

Hey guys, I'll be your new updator now, taking over from tau. I know that these may be a little short, but I am still trying to get back in the hang of updating, so they will more than likely improve in the future.

The Forbidden Garden

Gemini Spark

You go down the middle path, hoping to possibly find Daphne along the way. Bathed in the eerie light coming from the pillars, you almost feel as if someone were watching you. Looking over you shoulder, trying to see if maybe someone was, you suddenly notice that the symbols behind you have started to dim slightly. This was just getting better and better, wasn't it? You start to rush along the path, trying to make sure that you keep ahead of the dimming symbols. Breaking into a brisk walk, you look up ahead and see the light starting to spread out, maybe there was something up there? Your suspicions turn out to be right, the path leading to a large area surrounded bordered by the glowing pillars.

In the centre of the area are three podiums, each reaching up to your waist. In the middle of the podiums is a small basket, containing small stone cut figures of Clefable, Blissey, Plusle, Alakazam, Hariyama, Mienshao, Metagross, Garbador, and Electrode. Also in the basket is a note. You reach down and pick the note up, which says:

Each of these podiums represents something that each of these pokemon may either have or belong to. Each podium will have an equal amount of pokemon that are relevant to it. If you should succeed in this task then you will move on. However if you fail... prepare to suffer the consequences.

It looks like you have a puzzle on your hands that you need to solve, especially if it means that you may find Daphne.What will you do?

{Yosh, thanks PG! I hope you have a really good adventure in mind for me! =D}

With no choice but to be led by the lights, Hyrem hoped the middle path would be the right path to Daphne. But with all this eerie light from the runes on the pillars, Hyrem couldn't help but be distracted. By the lights, by his worries ... by the nagging feeling that he was being watched. He looks behind him and sees the lights dimming. If he didn't hurry, he would be left in the dark! Great, now what? Hyrem thought with annoyance. He started to walk faster, making sure he was always ahead of the lights going out.

Finally, the lights ahead of him branch out and outline a large room. In the middle stood three small pillars, about two or three feet tall. As Hyrem moves closer he could see a basket with small figurines of nine different Pokemon, none of which Hyrem had registered in his Pokedex yet, nor was he going to be able to register them since these weren't the actual Pokemon. Oh, guess I should say he found a note too:

Each of these podiums represents something that each of these pokemon may either have or belong to. Each podium will have an equal amount of pokemon that are relevant to it. If you should succeed in this task then you will move on. However if you fail... prepare to suffer the consequences.

"A puzzle? Seriously!?" Hyrem said out loud with even more annoyance. Every moment he spent playing this place's games was another moment in which Daphne could get herself into danger. But if he didn't play them, he'd never be able to find her, so once again he had no choice. Okay, think! It says "Each podium will have an equal amount of Pokemon that are relevant to it," so there should be three separate piles that have three Pokemon each. ... Maybe there's a way to add all of their numbers up? No, that's silly, how would an ancient place like this be able to know Pokedex numbers?

Maybe weight class? If that's it, then I'd be in trouble; weight doesn't show up until you register them in their Pokedex, and I haven't registered them yet. Same goes for height too. Hyrem paced around the pillars for a while, trying to think of possible ways to differentiate them. Organizing them by type makes even less sense because there are seven different types being represented here- Wait! I think I have it! While he couldn't check Dexelle for specific information on these Pokemon, he could use it to check another type of information: Egg Groups! He went through each Egg Group, starting at the top. With the first few he couldn't find a single Pokemon being featured, but then he checked the Fairy egg group, and he saw Clefable listed! And further down the list were Blissey and Plusle! Maybe he was on the right track! On the Field egg group, Mienshao showed up, but none of the other Pokemon were in that egg group, so he had to keep looking. When he looked at the Human-Like egg group, he could see Alakazam, Hariyama, and Mienshao on the same list. That could mean the last three were related, but he had to check to make sure. Another few egg groups turn up empty for the last three, but when he looked at the Mineral egg group ... there was Electrode! Come on, go further down ... Yes, there's Metagross! Okay, please, last one, pleeeease be there! ... Yes, yes, Garbodor was in the Mineral egg group too! He had a solution!

Picking up the Clefable, Blissey, and Plusle figurines, he places them on one podium, then on the second he carefully sets the Alakazam, Hariyama, and Mienshao figurines. Finally, he puts the Metagross, Electrode, and Garbodor figurines on the third podium. And then he steps back. Well, that was his solution. Whether it was right remained to be seen, but he checked, and it made a whole lot of sense in his mind. Now what, silly light show place?

Stardust Fieldskaisap112: The Rapidash’s horn begin to glow as it charges, with Kitty rushing her own attack as she begins to make another two copies of herself with Double Team. The copies are made right on time, with the Rapidash dashing through the imaginary Kitty with Megahorm, and just as the glow from the powerful attack subsides, the Rapidash is hit with a Water Pulse, and as the water drips from the Rapidash, you can see it pant quite laboriously now. The Rapidash furiously charges at Minori, slamming into him with his purple horn with Poison Jab, the seal rolling on the floor before hitting the couch on the side. Kitty gives the horse no time to recover as she slams her tail as stealthily as possibly with a Faint Attack, her tail covered in dark energy as she does, making the horse whine in pain. Its nostril flare, and uses the same energy as before when attacking Minori on Skitty as it slams into her with Take Down, sending the cat flying to the wall, hitting it and you hear a horrible cracking sound as she does. You try to get to Kitty, but it seems like she is still able to fight as she shakily gets up from the attack, with Rapidash having suffered recoil damage from it as well as he winces in pain. You then feel something touching your shoes, and look down to see the Turtwig, as he looks at Jenny and then to the side. The Turtwig gives you a look of desperation, as if he wants to go to Jenny and Growlithe itself. Minori unleashes one more Water Pulse at the Rapidash, the fiery maned horse neighing loudly as the attack hits it, sucking more health from it. The horse looks like it is about to double over, but manages to keep standing.The man boasts loudly as the last attack hits, “Okay…here we go, kid, time to end this match! Rapidash! Use Overheat on the place, as many times as you can!” With everything around you being made of wood, or what appears to be a wood or flammable material, looks like you better pull the big guns for this….

What will you do?

Rapidash’s Megahorn was no joke, but Noriko was more than confident in Kitty’s capabilities. The confidence wasn’t misplaced as Kitty dashed toward Rapidash while splitting into multiple Skitties with Double Team. Rapidash rushed right through a mirage, the glow fading shortly before a big Water Pulse hit the Fire-type square in the face. Minori seemed happy at the bull’s-eye and the clear weakening of Rapidash, but the joy faded when the latter rushed straight for Minori regardless of seeming like it could collapse any moment. The horn turning a glowing purple, Rapidash slammed into him with a Poison Jab, sending the seal flying until he hit the couch. “Minori! Are you okay?!” Minori made an affirmative noise at his trainer’s question, slowly getting back up.

Meanwhile, Kitty had attacked Rapidash with Faint Attack, dark energy swirling around the pink puffy tail. Rapidash neighed in pain, but still refusing to go down. Nostrils flaring it turned around and slammed into Kitty with Take Down, and whether the attack was fueled by rage or not, it hit hard, Kitty flying across the room and crashing into the wall. The sickening crack that ensued made Noriko’s stomach turn. “Kitty! Are you hurt? Please answer me!” Kitty growled a bit, but shakily got back on her feet. Noriko sighed with relief, and then had a start when something poked her leg. She looked down, the Turtwig looking back at her, eyes full of concern, looking at Jenny and then to his side. “I know, I wanna save them as fast as possible too. Don’t worry, we’re on it.” Noriko hoped her words would calm the small Grass-type down. She had to turn her attention back to the battle though, Minori slapping Rapidash with another Water Pulse, water splashing all over the place. Finally stopping, shaking and seeming to be about to crash right there, Rapidash was closing in on its last bits of health. Amazingly enough, the kidnapper was far from giving up – and Noriko started fearing he was far off the deep end, as well, when she heard the words coming out of his mouth.

“Okay…here we go, kid, time to end this match! Rapidash! Use Overheat on the place, as many times as you can!”

Are you crazy?! You’ll burn this whole place down! As soon as the thought crossed Noriko’s mind, she realized that it was probably the man’s intention to begin with. This wannabe-arsonist had to be stopped, now! “Oh no you don’t! Kitty, use Rain Dance and if that alone doesn’t work, Blizzard should do the trick. Minori, you use Water Pulse twice and take Rapidash down!” Rain Dance should boost Minori enough to put an end to this and also make this place wet enough for no fire to start… “Come on guys, let’s finish this!”

"Known as the Desert Spirit, Flygon are known to create sandstorms with it's powerful wings that sound like singing." Said Kori's Pokedex. The frog suddenly becoming a Flygon was something that would have deterred any other person, but after being lost in a strange desert for lord knows how long even, and seeing a giant, speaking frog in the first place, Kori wasn't in any place to really question much of anything, so he just decided to go with it and whip out his Pokedex to get a read on the thing.

"Well, that seems pleasant." He said before the Flygon opened it's mouth and a pillar of fire streamed from it. Quickly ducking out of the way, Kori immediately ran, once again away as fast as he could while trying to assess his situation and what he could exactly do. He looked at the Pokedex to get the facts of the matter.

"Flygon, evolves from Vibrava at level 45. Ground and Dragon typing. There's nothing that I have right now that can take on something like that!" Kori said. His Combusken wouldn't be able to stand up to it on typing alone. Neither would Pachirisu. Kori looked behind him and saw the Mystic Pokemon flying behind him, readying another Flamethrower attack. "Ugh! Even Paras is screwed with that Flamethrower and I don't think Girafarig could take that thing on it's own. I believe in my Pokemon, but this desert is just insane! I just have to keep going!"

Space PathKindrindra: Thinking about the possibility of uncovering many, if not all, the mysteries this golden road will lead you to discover, you decide to start your adventure with Sundance by your side. You can see the beautiful lush colors of the Cloud Garden below the semi-transparent golden glowing ground, albeit a little more golden than usual, along with your pal on shoulder. The sky around you seems to be changing as well as you advance further into wherever the road is taking you, from light blue to darkened blue colors, with hints of bright lights scattered about.

Suddenly, you hear something; you look around and see nothing, until Sundance begins to screech and point you to the direction of where the sound is coming from, only she is pointing above. You see what appears to be a meteor, and it seems to be getting closer by the second. It is coming towards you! Though it doesn’t seem like it’ll land on you, you get down to the floor with Sundance since it looks like it'll collide in a few seconds. Within seconds you can feel the floor golden colored ground tremble below you. You look around and see smoke, about half a mile away from you. It seems something has landed on the side of the road, not in the direction of the path is supposed to take you to go into space. While going to investigate might be an option, it seems like it'll be a detour from your original path towards space...

What will you do?

Kin happily continued down the golden path, quickly jotting down notes as he went. Suddenly, he stopped. Glancing around, he frowned as a low whistling sound reached his ears, pausing for a moment to glance around his surroundings. However, nothing displaced the heavenly path- Yet, the whistling continued to grow louder. Suddenly, Sundance's shriek pierced his ears, and Kin glanced to his partner to see them staring at something far above them. Swiveling to match sightpaths, the great boulder finally entered Kin's vision. The speed of the meteor caused Kin's eyes to widen in shock, yet he luckily retained enough composure to run some quick calculations.
"I- It's not going to hit us. But- Debris!" Kin had barely gotten out the broken sentence before he threw himself to the floor, quickly covering Sundance with his arms. The sudden crash shook the path, temporarily creating the sensation of floating before the shockwaves died. Rising to his knees, Kin first confirmed that Sundance was fine (if a tad squashed), then surveyed his surroundings, eventually spotting the new addition to the landscape. Kin rose to his feet before exchanging a glance with his partner.
"Well, after that grand entrance, it'd be rude of us to ignore it, right?" cracking a sadistic grin as he spoke, Kin wasted no time in taking off towards the smoking mass. 'A meteor, eh? A gift from the galaxy- passing on this chance would be foolishness of the highest degree!'- as Kin thought this, he quickly retrieved one of his many notebooks from his pocket, wasting no time in recording the appearance of the skystone as he ran.

People should watch what they enjoy regardless of what others think, even if it's a terribad guilty pleasure.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doppleganger

Though, I also dislike the concept of lamenting the current day while wishing to re-experience the past. At least, my modern attitude is to try and make each new day magical even if it's not, since exclusively reminiscing about the past is too pathetic.

RainbowRoadPest: (Sorry about that, knew I had to fix something but forgot about it, sorry ^^;) Hugo grinned as you both saw this as the perfect opportunity to escape. Barely being able to see through the smoke, he grabs a Pokéball and with a low flash, Bagon returns safely to his Pokéball. "Let's go!" He says in a hushed tone, before stopping for a second and looking back, and saying this loud enough for the guards to hear, "Bagon, hang in there buddy, use Flamethrower twice on both Pawniards!" He grabs your hand and points to the side of what was once Rainbow Road, that now has a few trees on it. You look back and see the smoke is still covering your escape, and the guards don't seem to be chasing you yet. Before long you can see the smoke from a distance, and it appears that you are safe, at least for now. "Hoooweee, that was close!" Hugo says, with a big smile on his face.

After walking for a while, the castle seems closer than ever, and you're finally able to grasp the full size of this castle as you hide in the trees around it with Hugo. It is easily at least 200,000 feet square, with the moat being at least 200 feet from the edge of the castle to the colorless land. Then you notice as you get closer to the edge of the moat, what appears to be water, but it is a dark color, and it is at least 20 feet down to the surface of the water to where you are, and it seems to be quite deep after the 20 feet drop, with even darker shadows roaming in the water scattered about and swimming. Hugo takes a Pokéball from his bag and releases a turtle Pokémon who yawns loudly "Tirrrrrr", Hugo bends down next to the Tirtouga, grunting as he lifts him in his arms, who seems rather happy, and drowsy at the same time.

"Anyway, here is the plan, we are going to have to take turns to go to the sewer since I don't think Tirtouga can take both of us. After you dive into the water, hold on to Tirtouga's shell, he'll take you there in no time." Tirtouga gracefully drops from the edge and dives into the water with no difficulty, floating and waiting for you to drop. You take a deep breath and dive into the water, and although your dive isn't as elegant or as perfectly executed as the turtle's, you quickly get help with the Tirtouga acting as a buoy and float to the surface. You grab his shell and he nods before swimming quickly to a large hole in the wall. Although it is slightly unsettling to see the shadows get near you, none of them get close enough to do anything, but in less than a minute you make it to the other side, you get up and stand on the hold and take peek into the sewer, and it looks quite large, but it also looks like it hasn't been used in a while. You look back at the rock turtle and see it has already made it to the other side, with Hugo jumping into the water. He grabs the turtle and they are both off, and before long they make it 3/4's of the way...1/2...1/4. Something swoops in from the sky, knocking Tirtouga to the side as soon as he is about 20 feet from you, with Hugo swimming after Tirtouga. Hugo tries to get to his partner, only he is also attacked by the same thing, a Murkrow, that's Pecking Hugo in the head. "Get off me!" Hugo screams at the Murkrow, flailing one arm towards the Murkrow and the other to keep afloat, and Tirtouga releases a Water Gun towards the Murkrow, which it manages to dodge and begins to Peck Tirtouga. Another Murkrow swoops down and starts to Peck Hugo relentlessly before he gets a chance to help Tortouga. You also see the shadows get closer to Hugo and Tirtouga, who are trying to get to you, only the Murkrow aren't making it easy...

Pest's heart was still pounding in her chest as she glanced back from the safety of the trees, watching the smoke continue to undulate from the place where the guards had confonted them just minutes earlier. She was surprised that her trick had worked, to be honest; her ears were still anxiously attuned to a possible cry of alarm. No such thing was forthcoming however, and as the distance grew broader she and her guide finally slowed their pace to a quick walk. "That was close," she gasped, massaging the stitch in her ribs with her free hand. As her panic died down, she made a mental note to get more exercise.

"Hoooweee, that was close!" Hugo agreed, beaming. There was a sense of relief in him that made her wonder yet again just how terrible this place was. She briefly considered what fate they'd just escaped, and shivered at the thought.

His hands swung rhythmically by his sides as they walked on, and only then did Pest realize that one of those hands was still clutching hers. The corner of her mouth lifted in an awkward half smile as she carefully slipped it out of his grasp, and she glanced at him hastily, suddenly worrying if that had offended him. Luckily, he didn't seem to notice.

Soon the castle was looming close before them, and she gaped at its size. She wasn't particularly familiar with castles, but it certainly looked far larger than it had from a distance. The gap between the castle and the mainland was particularly impressive; she'd always imagined moats to be around fifteen feet broad, maybe twenty at the most. As they neared the edge, the darkness of the water caught her eye, only hinting at the scale of its mysterious depths. Shadows flitted through the moat, looking almost carefree in their swimming, but she still had to clamp down on her imagination before it could add teeth and claws to their forms. Hopefully they're just Magikarp.

A brief flash drew her attention back to Hugo, who was picking up the turtle Pokemon he had just released. "Oh, he's adorable!" she gushed, patting its head tentatively. Fortunately it didn't bite her hand off, instead smiling sleepily and yawning. She decided she should look into getting a turtle at some point. They were just so cute!

Unfazed by her sudden fangirling, Hugo launched into his explanation of what to do next. "Anyway, here is the plan. We are going to have to take turns to go to the sewer since I don't think Tirtouga can take both of us." She nodded at this, still not sure that its small size could even handle one person. "After you dive into the water, hold on to Tirtouga's shell, he'll take you there in no time." Saying such, he allowed the turtle to slip from his grasp, and it fell into the water with surprising elegance. After a small splash, it resurfaced and bobbed lightly in position, glancing upwards expectantly.

Pest took a deep breath. This is nothing, she told herself. You jumped off the edge of Rainbow Road, for Arceus' sake! What's twenty feet to that? Swallowing and taking a deep breath, she leapt off the edge and closed her eyes, not wanting to watch the moat rushing violently up towards her. A second later her acceleration was abruptly reversed by a sudden crash of water around her, and she briefly panicked as she struggled towards the surface. Her flailing arms soon found security around Tirtouga's body, and she panted for breath, making sure that she had a firm hold on the Pokemon. It nodded once she was ready, and made its way towards a hole in the castle wall she hadn't noticed before. As it swam, she glanced nervously at the shadows in the water, which came slightly closer as if curious. None of them drew near enough for her to see just what sort of creatures they were, though she imagined something slick and scaly brushing lightly against her leg.

Soon enough they had reached the hole, and she clambered awkwardly onto the lip of firm stone. "Thanks," she said in relief, giving Tirtouga another pat on the head before it swam away. She squinted into the darkness of the sewers; it was hard to tell much about those depths, but they looked appropriately sized for the rest of the castle.

Pulling her Level Ball off of her belt, she summoned Mercury back to her side; the Lillipup, now freshly rejuvenated, sniffed about curiously. "How're you doing?" she asked, scratching his furry head. "Feeling better?" He nodded and wagged his stubby tail. "Sorry about having Vesta knock you out earlier," she went on, "we were in a bit of a hurry. The sooner we get out of this place and back to my dimension, the better." The puppy licked her hand and wagged harder, saying all was forgiven. She smiled, her heart swelling at the knowledge that he wouldn't have to live in this land anymore.

Turning and looking back, she saw that Tirtouga had already reached the edge of the mainland; Hugo's distant form hit the water with a splash. "He probably knows his way through the sewers," she told the pup as she watched them rapidly approach. "But it'd probably be a good idea to have a keen nose like yours to keep us from getting lost anyway. Better safe than sorry. I know it might still smell kind of gross in there, but-"

Mercury stiffened suddenly and growled, and Pest's attention was caught by the swooping shape of a Murkrow knocking Tirtouga to the side. Hugo's attempts to reach his Pokemon were twarted by the Murkrow, which Pecked at his head despite his efforts to shoo it away. His shout of "Get off me!" was seemingly acknowledged as it darted towards Tirtouga in retaliation for its failed Water Gun, but the appearance of another of its kind prevented him from reuniting with the turtle. As if that weren't bad enough, the shadows were beginning to swarm around them almost hungily.

Biting back a curse, Pest wracked her horror-stricken brain for a way to get them out of this. "Mercury, you have to hit the Murkrow hard to get their attention. Use Hyper Voice! Maybe that'll hit the shadows too, I don't know. Whether or not the Murkrow start toward you, Yawn at the closest one, then Yawn at the other. And as for those shadows ..."

She glanced quickly about the sewer entrance, searching for something that could serve as an impromptu weapon. "I need a rock or something to throw at them, where they're thickest, in case the Hyper Voice doesn't distract them. We need Hugo and Tirtouga to have enough space so they can get back together. When those things start heading towards us, we'll back up a little; we need to know what they are and how we can beat them." Dropping to her hands and knees, she groped around for an ideally-sized piece of rubble, calling over her shoulder at her distressed friends: "Cover your ears!"

Going to go ahead and post these now before schoolwork picks up and starts seriously kicking my butt. If I do short installments in quick bursts like these, Updating on a regular basis might be more manageable... But again making no promises.

Anyway, enjoy.

Sky Gate

Shadowshocker – Kneeling down, you dispense with pretense and reveal the doll to Jacob, at the same time explaining Doldrum’s true purpose. The lad appears a little confused and crestfallen as his present floats from the past to the future. Doldrum pats his head consolingly but hangs confidently by yours. Inflated by the support, you continue on, carefully broaching the topic of his death. Taking Taryn’s advice, you try tact but remain blunt in some regards, using your own discretion. Though you dodge and dance the direct subject, understanding seems to dawn on his face. He looks from you to Doldrum, then to the Murkrow boring holes behind you, and nods slowly.

“I see. So-rry, mist-ah. I sort-a knew… Some-thing was-n’t right. Da crows have been rea-lly nice to me… But it feels like I don’t be-long here.”

He stares down at his palms, pale and drooping detachedly despite the warmth and support from your thick jacket. He shudders.

With pieces falling into place, and the conversation falling into silence, you worry what reaction will result, whether you’ve opened worse than a can of worms. Hopefully not a gate to hell; dealing with a demon child was not on your list of things to do today. However, Taryn was apparently right. After a moment he merely looks up and smiles sadly, tiredness showing around his gray sockets. Yet the eyes housed within still shine, which is a comfort.

“Thanks for let-ting me bor-row your ball-oon, mist-ah. His name’s Dol-drum, huh? You can have him back now.”

He hands you the string, and in return you gratefully gift him the plush. He hugs it close as another family passes by, on their way to the gate piled with their prizes and souvenirs, but most of all precious memories. As the day and the excitement it entailed both draw to a close, the crowd commences to thin. Exhausted but satisfied parents head home while holding the hands of their kids, half-heartedly protesting as they rub their fading lids. A young couple shoulders a small toddler who was already sound asleep, the end of a round inflatable still clutched tight in her fist as she sucks the thumb of the other. However, her grip loosens, and the free spirit floats away, eventually crossing the ethereal horizon. Jacob watches it go, then beams.

“Thank you for coming with me to the fest-ival too. It’s been really fun. I think I'd like to take a rest now though."

As he speaks, you notice his pronunciation has improved immensely. His physical features pronounce more too. In the softness of twilight, his cheeks seem to gain color and firmness, taking on a healthy, human hue.

A quiet whisper follows: “Plus I want to see my parents.”

By that final statement, there is no longer any doubt in his meaning. You can tell his words carry strength and conviction.

He hesitates. “…But before that, there’s one last thing I want to do.” You follow his line of sight to the spot where the target vanished, and find beside it a superior version floating in the air, a basket dangling underneath.

“Dad always said he’d take me on one of those someday,” he sighs wistfully. Upon this lonely remark, Murkrow glides down and lands on his shoulder, as if to serve as a replacement for at least some sort of live companion itself. (Although you get the feeling it and its flock are the only ones fighting this fate, refusing to accept the loss of a friend in the first place.) Casting nervously about, you relax to realize that in everyone's haste to make leave or have some final fun, none even bother to spare a glance in your direction. They're all drunk on their own fulfillment. At this point, people aren’t paying attention to what they would probably assume is a stuffed parrot toy anyway. Besides, its plumage blends into the developing dark.

It shuffles awkwardly to create a perch amonst the bundle of clothes, achieving this by lightly pecking at the boy’s scarf. Jacob grins appreciately, giggling as the shifting of cloth tickles. He pulls another bit of brown food out of his pocket to offer Murkrow, who snaps it up indiscriminately. You suppress a gag as it swallows the disgusting morsel in one gulp. By the disgruntled glare it gives you in response, it’s clear it does not approve of your actions, nor your role as a guardian any longer. And it’s true, you’ve fulfilled your obligation. In turn you’ve gotten what you came for. Is there any reason to honor another request?

The maid listens quietly as you make your speech, eyeing the Combee cradled in your palms with growing sympathy. She then turns to Amanda.

“Is what this cretin says true, milady?”

The girl nods, and Lillian flips up her feather duster, withdrawing her heel as well. Her static, slightly unnerving smile remains the same as she offers a hand to help you up.

“My apologies, sir. Let’s get this Combee to the hospital then. We shall take the car in that case, and you may ride in the back.”

She glances at the butler, who seems less inclined to believe your story but straightens respectfully. “Most certainly, straight away.” He pulls out a cellular and makes a quick call. To your surprise, a few seconds later you hear the rumble of an engine, and whirl around to see a long limousine swerving into view, completely ignorant of the grass. It pulls up in front of the forest and pauses to lower down the window a few inches as Lillian leans over to whisper a few words. Try as you might to stand on tiptoe, you cannot peer over her back, within or through the dark glass to get a glimpse of the driver. However, the effort proves worthless anyway as Lillian moves aside to allow the chauffeur to step out. (Although his features are still mostly obscured by his hat.) Without a sound, he opens the door to the vehicle and bows, waiting patiently for the party to get in.

Amanda enters first, followed by the butler. When it comes to your turn, any misgivings you might have are swept aside as the maid clamps your shoulders and practically plops you forcefully onto the plush seats, squeezing in next to you with a wide beam that makes your face flush. You squirm a little as you feel her leg brush up beside yours, the contact of smooth, creamy skin driving your “pure” soul almost into a frenzy (though another part of your discomfort stems from the fact you feel she has her trusty feather duster hidden somewhere under those frills, still trained on you). From the opposite side you can sense the butler glaring at you warily, with little Amanda watching by his side, so you smartly swallow any sort of lustful comment or complaint. The side then slams shut as the footman’s feet fade, and you shrink into the cushions, hardly able to enjoy the luxury as you wonder just what sort of crazy compartment you’ve gotten yourself stuck in. Something tells you the handle is probably locked too…

Just then, the cabin jerks, and you gasp, quickly trying to cover Combee as you realize you’re making a swift u-turn. You grimace and hold onto your lunch as the limo backs up onto the RainbowRoadand begins racing down the stretch towards the Sky Gate, rolling over rocks in the way without warning. The other three lean nonchalantly along with the abrupt movements, as if anticipating them. Seems they’re quite familiar with this route, or perhaps just accustomed to such insane steering. The maid even pulls out a nail file and attends to her digits in the meantime, whilst the butler presses a few more buttons on his phone to dial another number. Between trying not to fall face-first into Lillian’s chest and keeping your rapidly pounding heart in your own, you manage to catch snatches of the conversation.

“We have located the young miss. She seems to be safe. However, we are taking a detour to the Pokémon Center in order to accompany a- ahem, ‘suspected’ kidnapper and an injured Combee for Nurse Joy to care for.” A pause. “You will meet us there? Understood. Very well, sir.” Another beat, and he answers quietly. “Yes, I’m sure she knows tomorrow’s the anniversary…”

There are a few more exchanges, but a sudden bump makes you miss them. After he hangs up, you notice Amanda frowning at the phone. She then becomes aware of you staring and sticks out her tongue before gazing out the window. Unable to remark on such rudeness in the presence of two overprotective guardians, you bite your tongue and follow her view to see that you’ve arrived at the…

Sky Gate

Gratefully breathing in fresh air after that ordeal, you barely notice the greater than usual bustle of activity as people congregate towards what appears to be a festival in front of the entrance to the garden. As you fight your way to the Pokémon Center’s access, it suddenly swings open and collides with your nose. A boy carrying a pamphlet brushes past, oblivious, but you struggle to keep silent, shaking your head. Your only thought is to bring the dying Combee inside the building before its condition grows any worse. Stumbling within, you are briefly aware of the butler catching the knob and holding it for the “young miss”, while the maid parts the crowd (as they gather around the parked expensive machine) and keeps them at bay. Figures.

You don’t bother to express jealousy however, as the first thing you do is carry Combee over to the counter and place it down as gently as possible. Nurse Joy seems to be preoccupied though, staring off into space for some strange reason… Impatient, you ring the bell, and she snaps directly into an overly cheerful greeting, which disturbingly reminds you of Lillian. You are both soon distracted from the awkward encounter however as she perceives the bee before her, and exclaims in shock at its level of injury. Cooing over the creature, she assures you she’ll fix it up right away and orders Chansey to place it on a stretcher, disappearing with it into the operating room.

Sighing with relief, you turn in time to see the glass slide ajar again, and another man with a well-groomed appearance rushes in. He seems younger and his attire more sophisticated than the butler, though his emotions are much more exposed. Spotting Amanda, he runs over and picks her up.

“There you are! Your mother and I were so concerned! Come on, dear, let’s head home and apologize for making her sad, shall we?”

The girl wiggles out of his grasp though and sets her bare heel down. The father’s eyes widen at her apparent lack of slipperwear, but before he can even remark, “Why, whatever happened to your shoes?”, his daughter starts screaming at the top of her lungs.

“SHE’S NOT MY MOTHER! AND I’M NOT SAYING SORRY!”

Everyone in the lobby stops what they’re doing and stares at the scene. The father fumbles with his shirt collar, uncomfortable at the attention he was attracting.

Amanda won’t hear any of it, however, and darts past her dad. While the maid and butler hasten to block, she easily dodges their outstretched hands and scurries outside, vanishing into the masses.

“Amanda, darling, come back!” the father cries desperately, but his voice is lost amongst the sea of tourists.

How do you respond?

takkupanda – ¤Repost of Your Last Update¤

Despite the toxins plaguing his system and growing desperation of the situation – or rather because of it – Broly bravely dashes towards your backpack and tug it open with his teeth. You watch in confusion as he digs doggedly through the contents, worried what he could be up to at such a crucial time. …Surely he wasn’t planning to desert as well? But any doubts are soon proven wrong as he raises his head with triumph, and clamped in his jaws is a brilliant stone of amber. It begins to glow white, which engulfs Growlithe before you can even say a word, forced to simply shield your eyes from the brightness.

When it fades, your proud pup now stands bolder and beautiful, a fully grown Arcanine. You gasp in admiration at such a determined move on his part. With renewed heart and strength, Broly turns to the now comparatively tiny bugs and grins, bellowing to show he won’t back down. The bees tremble in terror, hardly having expected to face a tank when their own services are down. Seems they’re starting to regret picking such a senseless fight with someone as smart and strong as yourself (or rather your teammates in this case).

Relieved to receive reinforcements in the nick of time, Nova is eager to fall back and support its partner from behind. Though the host is down, spinning helps to save the data on the hard drive, and it manages to escape from the server spiders. It then launches a rapid round of sniper-shots, light bombs that burst into stars upon contact with the enemy. The Beedrill buzz in mild pain – but more so annoyance, snapping back to attention. Despite daunting odds, they wouldn’t give up this battle so easily. It was time to pull out all the stops.

One of them faces Nova and glares, giving all its Grass Energy towards GIGA DRAINing the Starmie of its health. Nova flashes in agony, and Broly barks with anger, stepping forward once again to defend his friend. Though he tries to watch his footing to avoid triggering any more mines, the other Beedrill is not about to let him get away with acting the hero. It fires a STRING SHOT around his larger legs, trapping them together. He trips and falls on several leftover spikes, howling as they assault his skin again.

Still, he manages to maneuver his mouth around and unleashes another wave of flames towards both foes, and they shriek, the second immediately stopping the sapping. Calling upon the kamikaze fighter within, the other whirls around and crashes into the canine with a DOUBLE-EDGEd blade, still burning as it intends to go down in a blaze of glory. Broly groans as he rolls back onto yet another barb, but having anticipated the attack he grunts and musters a vortex inferno that ensnares his captor in turn. It cries out as the embers exact justice on its body, finally falling to the ground, fainted.

Seeing its partner defeated, the other soldier panics, pitifully pulling its wings towards itself as it pleads for forgiveness. Nova shows no mercy though, not after what the bug did to it. It blasts the Beedrill with as much emotional grief to match the physical level it had caused. The insect falters, but somehow remains flying. It is then that you realize its withdrawn gesture served as a sort of makeshift shelter in an attempt to ENDURE whatever came next, and shout a warning to Nova (without even wasting time to wonder where the opponent could have learned such an advanced technique – though strange feats can be achieved when one is driven against a wall). However, it’s too late, as the Beedrill unwraps itself and rams into Nova in a last-ditch ENDEAVOR. Nova crumples, barely blinking as it struggles to stand. They stare each other, panting, either a single tip away from exhaustion…

At that moment, Ursaring comes bearing down and swats carelessly at the bug, sending it spiraling into the sky until it’s simply a speck. You glance over to find the rest of the swarm scattered about, a bloody battlefield of broken warriors and spirits. You can’t help but whistle, impressed.

Ursaring slowly swerves and staggers towards you, and it takes you a second to realize she’s reaching out for Teddiursa, who gurgles joyfully against your grasp. Before its mother can take two strides though, she collapses, and you are shocked to see the number of welts on her back. Both bears need medical attention, and fast – as does Broly. Nova too is on the brink of fatigue. You bite your lip, gazing around at your poor wounded party. You may have won the war, but at what cost?

Just then, you hear a rustle in the bushes, and glance curiously over, seeing to your surprise the Weedle from earlier. It appears to be dragging some sort of sack made of leaves, filled to the brim with bright pink Pecha Berries.

Despite the daunting foe before you, Lemon Drop pumps her paws in preparation. You force yourself to choke back a chuckle of amusement at her adorableness, finally understanding why Bill and Ian had laughed at her appearance. Still, looks can be deceiving, and you have full faith in her abilities. She’ll show this boulder bully and the rest of the band (not to mention her buddy Blaze <3) who’s boss. No one gets away with calling her a pipsqueak – or making fun of her friends, for that matter!

Of course, Marche can’t be counted out for this fight either, and of course can be counted on too to prove his pride. So while his partner primes an attack, you whisper a plan for keeping up with her pace. He nods and starts scraping his skin against the stones, smoothing to reduce air resistance. In the meantime, Lemon Drop races fearlessly towards Gigalith, ready to sock it to him good. With a side-step and elegant spin-jump, she plants a perfect punch on the bottom of his jaw. Caught unawares, he is forced to stumble back, surprised by the power such a tiny Pokémon could pack. Landing with a nimble leap, Lemon Drop grins cheekily as Gigalith groans and rubs his chin, putting up her fists for another go. She dances circles about him and sticks out her tongue, revealing whatever she may lack in size and strength she makes up for with fancy footwork.

She then begins to charge up another blow by swinging her arm in wide arcs. Unfortunately her gloating gets in the way this time, as Gigalith easily sees it coming and HARDENs himself. What he doesn’t expect though is for Marche to bring the other half of brawn (as well as brain) to the table, launching himself with sudden speed at the opponent’s base to collide with and collapse one of his legs. Gigalith grunts as he drops to his knee, and Lemon Drop takes advantage of the opportunity to follow up with a second roundhouse. However, thanks to his toughened exterior, Gigalith is more annoyed by this attempt than anything. To her horror, it only causes him to roar and respond by BLASTing ROCKs in her face. She squeals in pain as she’s sent flying back, pinned helplessly under one of the projectiles.

Gigalith then gets back up and faces the other mild irritant, answering the Geodude’s cheap shot with one of his own by SLAPping MUD in Marche’s eyes. Marche curses as he blinks and tries to rub the grain out, but to no avail. In his blindness, he accidentally bumps into a rock formation and topples it nearly onto you, giving Gigalith more glee as you desperately dodge the falling blocks. With both “insects” incapacitated, Gigalith finishes by whipping up a SANDSTORM as if to simply blow them away. Lemon Drop coughs and spits as the filth strikes her fur, her sensitive flesh not meant for such a harsh spa treatment as her comrade received earlier. While Marche doesn’t suffer as much from the weather conditions due to his affinity, it does worsen the grit in his gaze, making it even more difficult to see.

Gathering your stance again, you also squint in order to glare at Gigalith, who so far seems to hardly be taking the battle seriously, seeing you and your Pokémon as literal bugs on a windshield. Charlie is still quiet or comatose, oblivious to both the squall and squabble raging outside, though Keith clatters with concern, and you don’t require a translator to tell what he means. Looks like you’re gonna have to step up your game if you want to get anywhere with this big guy.

What are your next orders?

(Yes, there is apparently mud and sand in the Rock Garden. I wrote yours last at 6 AM, sorry if it's not up to stuff. x.X)

Though the frosty air makes your hand itch to pull a pack of cigarettes, push away the dark and bitter thoughts swirling in your soul by drowning it in more smoke, the smiles of your young Pokémon stay. They are more than enough to warm your heart, and you hug them close as you call to mind memories as medicine instead. Fonder ones of the first Christmas spent with your mates, a time you will never forget.

Evidence of feeling falls down your face, and you wipe it away quickly. Emboldened, you decide you will run with the wind. Chase change, embrace it.

You walk along the wall, letting the breeze blow against your back, guiding to your destination. On eyesight’s edge, the chimney by the road slowly slides from view.

As you approach the hill, the storm suddenly picks up stronger. The tree rustles and waves, as if coming alive to greet you. You seek to interpret the flames’ movement as they dance, the most ancient art of communication. Pure, primitive. Coming close, you reverently touch the bark, tough and gnarled with age. Age associates with wisdom. There must be magic and power here, if only you are able to access it. Gazing up at the branches high above, so thick and widespread they block the sun, you close your lids as gold showers rain down, as if granting Mother Nature’s blessing. Washing away the sadness in your lungs.

As light slants through the leaves, it shines upon a hole in the trunk. Curious, you attempt to peer within, but can see only shadows. Yet upon insinuating your fingers, they come in contact with what feels like some kind of container. It is lodged deep though, and struggle as you might you fail to pry it loose on your own. Your Omanyte slithers down your arm to assist though, wriggling its slippery tentacles between the cracks to gently persuade the possible treasure to leave (perhaps so it can claim the contents for itself). Eventually the prize pops out into your palm. Togepi trills with triumph and tries to grab it, engaging in a tug-of-war with Omanyte who refuses to let go. Despite having the advantage of more limbs on its side, its opponent puts up a fierce struggle, and you sigh, shaking your head at their childish refusal to share.

Tickling both Pokémon’s tummies, you take advantage of the moment of weakness to pluck the object from their grasp. It appears to be a wooden box, composed of smooth, even slats on each side, but fastened so seamlessly not even a nail could squeeze though. The material is coarse, red grain, and its pristine condition reminds you of the door you encountered earlier. Turning it on its axis, you find carved on the four equatorial surfaces symbols of what you speculate to be a sun, a leaf, a snowflake, and a flower. On the top and bottom are a circle with 12 scores uniformly spaced on the outer perimeter (could it be a clock, perhaps?), and another ring of eight smaller characters (each three lines grouped together, alternately broken in no apparently particular pattern), respectively. In the center of each of the six planes lies a small keyhole, identical to the ones you saw at the gate.

Though you can probably presume the answer, you attempt to open it, to no avail. Setting the puzzle on the ground, you ponder what the meaning behind such a strange item could be as your Pokémon take turns trying to break it ajar (in this case, their weakness is indeed a virtue). The timing and position of such an obvious clue’s placement proved too perfect, it could hardly be a coincidence.

At the moment you muse over this, you hear a soft presence pace behind you, and whirl around to find an adorable Autumn Deerling gazing up with large, brown doe eyes. It prances with excitement and nudges your body, then the box. Then it tiptoes to the tree and nods eagerly towards the base. Blinking, you draw near, and it backs up only to allow you to brush aside the overgrown grass. Lodged between the roots, you gasp to discover a thin mesh of glowing gray-blue beams tracing over the earth. Faint and ethereal, like a spider web. A spilled spool of silver thread, looping upon itself. Mute and bright colors criss-cross, catching diamond dewdrops that dazzle.

You look to the little fawn in confusion, and it indicates the box again, pushing it insistently with its nose to the net. The rays seem to hum with energy in response.

Free from forewarning, trip. …Trip? Thou turnst to track the trench that triggered thee to falter. There transpires the tiny fellow thou formerly followedst to this twisted terrain. The Trapinch flags from the tunnel, tempting forth. Trust the traitor that fathered this fine fix?

Shadowshocker – Kneeling down, you dispense with pretense and reveal the doll to Jacob, at the same time explaining Doldrum’s true purpose. The lad appears a little confused and crestfallen as his present floats from the past to the future. Doldrum pats his head consolingly but hangs confidently by yours. Inflated by the support, you continue on, carefully broaching the topic of his death. Taking Taryn’s advice, you try tact but remain blunt in some regards, using your own discretion. Though you dodge and dance the direct subject, understanding seems to dawn on his face. He looks from you to Doldrum, then to the Murkrow boring holes behind you, and nods slowly.

“I see. So-rry, mist-ah. I sort-a knew… Some-thing was-n’t right. Da crows have been rea-lly nice to me… But it feels like I don’t be-long here.”

He stares down at his palms, pale and drooping detachedly despite the warmth and support from your thick jacket. He shudders.

With pieces falling into place, and the conversation falling into silence, you worry what reaction will result, whether you’ve opened worse than a can of worms. Hopefully not a gate to hell; dealing with a demon child was not on your list of things to do today. However, Taryn was apparently right. After a moment he merely looks up and smiles sadly, tiredness showing around his gray sockets. Yet the eyes housed within still shine, which is a comfort.

“Thanks for let-ting me bor-row your ball-oon, mist-ah. His name’s Dol-drum, huh? You can have him back now.”

He hands you the string, and in return you gratefully gift him the plush. He hugs it close as another family passes by, on their way to the gate piled with their prizes and souvenirs, but most of all precious memories. As the day and the excitement it entailed both draw to a close, the crowd commences to thin. Exhausted but satisfied parents head home while holding the hands of their kids, half-heartedly protesting as they rub their fading lids. A young couple shoulders a small toddler who was already sound asleep, the end of a round inflatable still clutched tight in her fist as she sucks the thumb of the other. However, her grip loosens, and the free spirit floats away, eventually crossing the ethereal horizon. Jacob watches it go, then beams.

“Thank you for coming with me to the fest-ival too. It’s been really fun. I think I'd like to take a rest now though."

As he speaks, you notice his pronunciation has improved immensely. His physical features pronounce more too. In the softness of twilight, his cheeks seem to gain color and firmness, taking on a healthy, human hue.

A quiet whisper follows: “Plus I want to see my parents.”

By that final statement, there is no longer any doubt in his meaning. You can tell his words carry strength and conviction.

He hesitates. “…But before that, there’s one last thing I want to do.” You follow his line of sight to the spot where the target vanished, and find beside it a superior version floating in the air, a basket dangling underneath.

“Dad always said he’d take me on one of those someday,” he sighs wistfully. Upon this lonely remark, Murkrow glides down and lands on his shoulder, as if to serve as a replacement for at least some sort of live companion itself. (Although you get the feeling it and its flock are the only ones fighting this fate, refusing to accept the loss of a friend in the first place.) Casting nervously about, you relax to realize that in everyone's haste to make leave or have some final fun, none even bother to spare a glance in your direction. They're all drunk on their own fulfillment. At this point, people aren’t paying attention to what they would probably assume is a stuffed parrot toy anyway. Besides, its plumage blends into the developing dark.

It shuffles awkwardly to create a perch amonst the bundle of clothes, achieving this by lightly pecking at the boy’s scarf. Jacob grins appreciately, giggling as the shifting of cloth tickles. He pulls another bit of brown food out of his pocket to offer Murkrow, who snaps it up indiscriminately. You suppress a gag as it swallows the disgusting morsel in one gulp. By the disgruntled glare it gives you in response, it’s clear it does not approve of your actions, nor your role as a guardian any longer. And it’s true, you’ve fulfilled your obligation. In turn you’ve gotten what you came for. Is there any reason to honor another request?

What is your decision?

Where the discussion with Taryn was comforting, the revelation between the scientist and Jacob seemed to lift a monumental weight off the former's shoulders. Doldrum, as though he had been gone for any eternity, gently nuzzled his roost on Shadow's messy hair as Arugulus slid up the scientist's shoulder and happily noted the return of the lost teammate. Durin, less capable of doing so, merely rolled around with a little more clink in his step. Novawing's eyelids closed a little, pleased but tired even as he held onto the comatose crow leader. Jacob had taken the news quite well, all things considering, and was clearly prepared to move on - the same, though, could not have been said of his caretaker. Much as Shadow had come to empathise with the boy, it wasn't easy to feel sorry for his unlikely associates.

As Jacob stared into the setting sun in the distance a new wave of relief and weariness set into Shadow's shoulders. While he didn't approve the Murkrow's machinations he appreciated how difficult it was to say goodbye, especially for one that would take all involved beyond a point of no return. The group watched the sun set silently, to some degree aware of what this final twilight would mean. Kneeling down, Shadow brought himself closer to the perching Murkrow. "I understand what you want to do," he whispered for the darkness bird, "But I think you know as well as I that it's not the best for him. Keeping him here isn't helping him out any more than it's helping you; you've seen how morose he is without his parents." A pause. "I'm sorry for your loss. I know he means a lot to you, but he means much more to two people very important to him. I don't expect you to agree with me... though, I think Jacob deserves to have his friends be happy for him."

Friends... now there was a thought. Were they not all friends, bonded by challenge and trauma? Surely, they should also accompany Jacob on his final journey across the skies. As though sensing what his Trainer was thinking, Novawing nudged Shadow with a knowing claw, and Arugulus gave a soft nod. It was only suitable, after all, as a part of the few who showed a glimpse of concern for the boy. And would Taryn not want to bid her farewells, given how she and Jacob both held a little of each other in their minds?

"Jacob, I think we can help you arrange a balloon ride if you'd like," Shadow offered. "It's the least we can do for you - if we talk to Miss Taryn, I'm certain she wouldn't say no. What do you say?"

Rose ArchShuckle: You decide to go forward, deeper into the Rose Arch in order to hopefully find some help for the Nidoran, despite having advanced so little. With the Nidoran having little energy to do anything at the moment, it seems like you’ll have to carry it, which it struggles at first as you slowly scoop it up, but settles down after a few second. Fizz doesn’t seem to be in bad shape, but the wear of the battle seems to have taken its toll as he walks with you, slower than usual.

You keep walking forward for a good while, until you notice something ahead, some sort of wall. You take a few more steps forward and see a rather large, and beautiful, looking house, one floor high, with cream walls and red rooftop. You also see a large garden in front, and that’s when you notice something else, a woman and man sitting on the ground in front of two large flower bushes, both no older than 30 years old, and both of them dressed similarly, in red shirts with blue jeans. They both seem to be tending to the flowers, and cutting the odd leafs here and there, “Nya?” the Nidoran looks up at you, looking slightly better, with Shuckle walking up behind you. The lady take a look around, and finally spots you. Her eyes widen as she sees you, "John!" she yelps, which gets the man's attention, with the lady pointing at you. He sees you and gets up rather quickly, "Who are you? What do you want?" he asks, looking quite startled to see you...

How will you respond?

Turtle looks extremely startled at being addressed, as well. But, he thought with an inward sigh, people here beyond the Rose Arch weren't used to company, probably. Like that one child with the Ralts who immediately went to battle! So combative.

"Hi, I'm Turtle, and this is Fizz," he responds good-naturedly. "We found this Nidoran wandering and thought it looked hurt. I fed it a Lum Berry and it seemed to recover a bit, but it's still too weak to walk. Do you think you could help us? Just a rest is all we need."

Fizz makes a few inquisitive noises as Turtle talks. Shuckles are built for endurance; though he was beginning to show a few signs of fatigue, the chance to stay in one place for a few minutes is giving Fizz the breather he needed.